Twitter owner Elon Musk has picked former NBCUniversal ad sales chief Linda Yaccarino as the company's new CEO, he announced in a tweet on May 12.
Musk said that Yaccarino will primarily focus on Twitter's business operations while he will focus on product design and new technology.
Earlier in the day, Musk had announced he had hired a new CEO for Twitter, without disclosing the name, and mentioned that she would start in about six weeks.
With this change, Musk will transition to the role of executive chairman and chief technology officer, overseeing product, software and sysops (system operator).
I am excited to welcome Linda Yaccarino as the new CEO of Twitter!@LindaYacc will focus primarily on business operations, while I focus on product design & new technology.Looking forward to working with Linda to transform this platform into X, the everything app. https://t.co/TiSJtTWuky
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— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) May 12, 2023
Interestingly, this appointment comes on heels of NBCUniversal expanding its Olympic Games partnership with Twitter earlier this month.
As part of this partnership, the media conglomerate will share key highlights and memorable moments from the Olympic and Paralympic Games on Twitter as well as produce and publish a daily live show on the platform.
Yaccarino had also interviewed Musk in an advertising conference in Miami in front of hundreds of advertisers last month.
Leading NBCUniversal's ad sales efforts
Yaccarino previously worked as the chairman of global advertising and partnerships at NBCUniversal for more than two and half years.
She joined NBCUniversal in 2011 and led the growth of the company's advertising sales efforts both nationally and globally to a over $10 billion dollar business on an annual basis.
She was responsible for monetising the firm's portfolio of linear networks, digital and streaming platforms, distribution and commerce partnerships, and client relationships and forged key advertising partnerships with companies such as Snapchat, YouTube, and Apple News.
Yaccarino also played a key role in the launch of the company's ad-supported video streaming service Peacock.
She was the first advertising chief to develop a unified, cross-media platform selling service called One Platform for advertisers. In addition, she also oversaw NBCUniversal's local advertising and strategic initiatives teams and spearheaded a new cross-functional data strategy unit across the firm.
Prior to joining NBCUniversal, Yaccarino spent nearly 20 years at global entertainment company Turner (formerly Turner Broadcasting System).
Twitter's turnaround efforts
This appointment comes at a critical time for Twitter as Musk looks to turn around the fortunes of the debt-laden social media platform.
Twitter's revenues have taken a major hit amid the continued slowdown in the digital advertising market and the multiple changes Musk has made to how the company operates since the $44-billion acquisition in October 2022. This includes slashing the company's workforce by nearly 80 percent.
Also read: Doge in, Larry Bird out: How Elon Musk is reshaping Twitter
Several major advertisers fled the social media platform in the ensuing chaos following Musk's takeover. This resulted in a massive drop in the firm's revenues, the tech billionaire said in November 2022.
Last month, Musk however claimed that most of the advertisers have returned or intimated that they will return, without disclosing any specifics. He also claimed that Twitter is “roughly break-even” and will likely be cash flow positive this quarter.
Yaccarino's extensive advertising experience could also help lure more advertisers to the platform or mend some of the earlier partnerships with advertisers.
The development also comes weeks after Twitter ceased to be an independent company following its merger with X Corp, a shell firm by Musk. The Tesla chief executive has previously announced that the Twitter acquisition would be an “accelerant" for creating X, which he dubbed as an "everything app"
"Looking forward to working with Linda to transform this platform into X, the everything app" Musk said in a tweet on May 12.
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