San Francisco, Ca., USA - April 9, 2015, San Francisco, Ca., USA - Zynga Inc., a provider of social game services, announced that current chief executive officer Don Mattrick will depart the company and the board of directors, effective April 8, 2015.
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Mr. Mattrick spent six years at Microsoft - the last three as president of the Interactive Entertainment Business.
During his six-year tenure at Microsoft, he also oversaw businesses and services focused on consumer products that included the groundbreaking Kinect entertainment products and PC and mobile interactive entertainment.
Mr. Mattrick served as the president of Worldwide Studios at Electronic Arts. During his 15-year career at Electronic Arts, Mr. Mattrick helped develop and scale the company’s leading global game franchises and brands including "Need for Speed," "FIFA" and "The Sims.â€
At age 17, Mr. Mattrick founded his first company, Distinctive Software, which was acquired by Electronic Arts in 1991.
Mark Pincus, Zynga's founder and chairman, will return to the role of Chief Executive Officer.
Mr. Pincus founded Zynga in 2007 and pioneered the social gaming industry, helping redefine entertainment and bring gaming to the mainstream. Mr. Pincus also founded Zynga.org in 2009, a nonprofit organization dedicated to using social games for social good.
In 2013, Zynga.org partnered with NewSchools Venture Fund to create co.lab, an education technology accelerator focused on enhancing the quality and reach of learning games and apps.
He has pursued his passion for creating Internet products since 1995, when he founded FreeLoader, the first web-based push company. Later, he founded Support.com, a pioneer in automating tech support, and took it public.
Then, in 2003, he launched Tribe.net, one of the first social networks. Mr. Pincus most recently founded superlabs in 2014, a San Francisco-based product lab focused on developing products that connect and empower people.
He graduated summa cum laude from University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School of Business and earned an MBA from Harvard Business School. ■