Jonathan Shambroom Assumes Leadership of Crackle

Jonathan Shambroom Assumes Leadership of Crackle

Crackle.com to debut Sony Pictures Television original online short-form entertainment

SAUSALITO, Calif., Feb. 27 /PRNewswire/ -- Crackle, a Sony Pictures Entertainment company, announced today that Jonathan Shambroom will take over leadership as senior vice president and General Manager of the video entertainment company and will lead the company's continued growth as it debuts new and original online short-form videos from Sony Pictures Television (SPT).

"Dave Samuel and I conceived of what was then called Grouper as an innovative peer-to-peer personal media sharing site back in 2004," said Josh Felser, co-founder of Grouper. "It's been a pleasure to nurture and develop Crackle into a leading video network showcasing the best in emerging talent. And now, with Jonathan at the helm, we are confident that audiences are in for even more of the best mind-blowing entertainment."

"Crackle is locked and loaded to be the trailblazer of the online entertainment space. Thanks to Josh and Dave we have a solid foundation. I have total confidence in our talented team to bring Crackle to every living room, desktop, and back pocket," said Shambroom. "Working closely with Sony and the up-and-coming creators we develop, Crackle will continue to offer the best digital entertainment available anywhere."

As a result of its current business model and hot new properties like Penn Says, from Penn Jillette of comedy magic team Penn & Teller, Mr. Deity and The Minisode Network, the site has seen traffic numbers double in recent months. Ad revenue has also increased significantly since the site's relaunch in July, with major brands like Honda, Ford, Pepsi, Adobe, and Sony Electronics sponsoring both content and channels.

"Jonathan has proven his leadership since joining the Crackle team, and his understanding of new media has dramatically driven the site's audience and revenue growth," said Sean Carey, senior executive vice president of Sony Pictures. "Sony Pictures' confidence in Crackle is stronger than ever and we are continuing to increase our investment in Crackle so that it becomes the Web's go-to destination for video entertainment."

Crackle has also announced they will have the exclusive debut window for new Sony Pictures Television distributed original short-form programming for new media, such as the new series. In addition to exhibiting content from outside producers, including the new upcoming SPT original short form program The Roadents, a flash-animated improvisational comedy described as "The Odd Couple" meets "Easy Rider," Crackle will continue to develop programming in house from Crackle Studios. Crackle Studios incubates cutting edge and original talent from the Web to the living room.

Shambroom has overseen product development and marketing for the company since September, 2005. A proven product innovator, he has built category-defining products in the consumer entertainment space for 15 years. Previously, he was EVP, Products for Jumpstart, which launched Tagged.com and incubated Hi5.com. Prior successes include Evite.com, When.com and PF Magic, which were acquired by IAC, AOL, and Mattel, respectively.

Crackle, Inc.

Crackle, Inc., a Sony Pictures Entertainment Company, is a multi-platform video entertainment network and studio that distributes work from the hottest emerging talent on the web and beyond. Crackle's addictive channels and shows reach a global audience across the Internet, in the living room, and on devices including a broad range of Sony electronics. Crackle, in on-going collaboration with Sony Pictures Entertainment and other leading partners, discovers and promotes the stars of tomorrow. Visit Crackle's site at http://www.crackle.com/.

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Source: Crackle, Inc.

CONTACT: Billy Sind, +1-310-713-5189, wjsind@groupsjr.com, or
Erica Annon, +1-212-751-3415, eannon@groupsjr.com, or Taryn Langer,
+1-212-751-3392, tlanger@groupsjr.com, all of Group SJR for Crackle, Inc.

Web site: http://www.crackle.com/

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Profile: International Entertainment