It’s all in the game: Livewire announces two key ANZ hires
Global gaming marketing and gametech company Livewire has made two senior hires, bringing on board Val Morgan Digital national sales director, Adam Fischer, and Mediacom creative systems director, Chris Johnston, both joining the business next month.
Fischer and Johnston
Fischer will join Livewire as the national commercial director, ANZ departing Val Morgan Digital where he was hired to build and lead the digital sales team. He was an important part of the success of Fandom in Australia and led the launch and growth of new publishing brands; The Latch, POPSUGAR & Thrillist and their local editions. Before joining Val Morgan, Fischer was the group head of sales at Ziff Davis for 6 years working across global digital brands including IGN, Mashable and PCMag.
On joining Livewire Fischer said, “I couldn’t be more excited to join Livewire during their explosive launch phase. As a category, gaming is booming, with over 17 million gamers in AU; and with their strategy and research first approach, Livewire is uniquely positioned to help brands find their relevance and authentically enter the world of gaming. There’s a powerful arsenal in their suite of products, including proprietary measurement tools, cookie-free data segments, top tier influencer access, and Australia‘s largest Gaming Ad Marketplace, with exclusive access to major in-game IP across Console, PC & mobile. The fact that Livewire has unlocked exclusive in-game inventory access to global metaverse powerhouse; Roblox, is testament to their credentials and an exciting step forward in connecting brands with diverse gaming audience.”
After 11 years at Mediacom, Johnston becomes the head of gaming strategy, ANZ and will work on a growing list of non-endemic brands investing in the gaming ecosystem and their gaming marketing strategies. He has held roles that combined strategic, content, media, and partnerships experience nationally. As Mediacom creative systems director, Johnston has worked across clients such as Adidas, Mars, Dell, Alienware, NBC Universal and Hasbro among many others.
Johnston said, “I am incredibly excited to be joining the team at Livewire as head of gaming strategy, ANZ. The opportunity to combine multiple passions of mine to a business and industry that is seeing incredible momentum is equal parts thrilling and the right kind of challenging. I look forward to driving the continued success of Livewire and the growth of its clients in the world of gaming.”
Livewire co-founders Indy Khabra and Brad Manuel said the hires were indicative of the demand the business is experiencing both in Australia and globally after expanding into EMEA and APAC.
“Chris and Adam are incredible talents joining Livewire during an exciting time of development. We are delighted to have them join the team representing excellence in strategy, service, and client growth. As brands and agencies prioritise gaming to capture attention and connect with the next generation of consumers whether by in-game advertising, content creators or immersive experience in the metaverse; the addition of Chris and Adam will help us deliver gaming marketing and gametech solutions that marketers require.”
Livewire launched in March 2021 before expanding to EMEA and APAC. They hired ex-Dentsu DGame creators Luke Aldridge and Peter Jacobs to lead their EMEA expansion. Just last week Livewire announced an exclusive partnership with Anzu.io bringing in-game advertising in global metaverse platform Roblox to the APAC region and recently announced their exclusive APAC (excl ANZ) partnership with Audiomob, the leading in-game audio advertising platform.
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topics
Adam Fischer
Brad Manuel
Chris Johnston
GameTech
gaming
Indy Khabra
Livewire
Luke Aldridge
Marketing
Mediacom
Peter Jacobs
Val Morgan Digital
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