Press Releases
George Garrick Named President and Chief Executive Officer of 1-800-FREE411 Provider Jingle Networks Jingle Networks, Creators of 1-800-FREE411, the First Free Nationwide Consumer Telephone Directory Assistance Service, Brings New CEO on Board & Expands Team
February 9, 2006 – Boston, Mass. Jingle Networks, Inc., operator of 1-800-FREE411, the first free nationwide consumer telephone directory assistance service, today announced that it has named George Garrick as Chief Executive Officer and President of the Company. Scott Kliger, former CEO and Founder of Jingle Networks, will remain on the Board and continue in his role as Chief Technology Officer.
George brings a wealth of experience in advertising and marketing as well as having had a series of successful accomplishments as both a traditional and Internet CEO. In 1998 George served as Chairman, President and CEO of Flycast Communications, the Internet’s first direct response advertising network, taking it public for $500 million in 1999 and subsequently selling it for $2.3B to CMGI in early 2000. In 2002 George became President and CEO of PlaceWare, Inc., which was later acquired by Microsoft for $200 million. Most recently, George was President and CEO of Wine.com, the Internet’s largest Wine retailer, where he installed an aggressive marketing effort putting the company on a 45% growth track. Prior to his Internet career George served as CEO-North America for Information Resources Inc., and as CEO of the A.C. Nielsen Marketing Company.
“I believe this is an explosive opportunity for consumers as well as advertisers”, said George. “It’s painful to pay $1 or more every time you call 411, and it’s an $8 billion industry. But the directory assistance call is also an ideal advertising environment where targeted ads and offers can be presented to callers. Our research shows that over 80% of callers would happily choose an ad-supported 411 service rather than pay for each call. For advertisers, this is an exciting new media channel at a time where other channels are becoming crowded and overpriced. I’m very excited to have this opportunity.”
“George Garrick has the background and experience to guide Jingle Networks as we continue on a very aggressive growth path. His ability to scale a team from 20 to 200 and revenue from hundreds of thousands to tens of millions of dollars is the perfect fit for our team. We’re thrilled to have him on board,” said Scott Kliger, Founder of Jingle Networks.
Jingle Networks received its Series A funding from First Round Capital, IDG Ventures, Liberty Associated Partners and Lead Dog Ventures. Josh Kopelman, managing director of First Round Capital, is Chairman and sits on the board. Other board members include David J. Berkman, managing partner of Liberty Associated Partners, and Chip Hazard, general partner of IDG Ventures. John Landry, managing director of Lead Dog Ventures is on the Board of Advisors.
About Jingle Networks & 1-800-FREE411Jingle Networks, operator of the nation’s leading ad-supported directory assistance service 1-800-FREE411, has significantly changed the directory assistance market by giving consumers an anytime, anywhere source of free information on the phone. 1-800-FREE411 is for anyone who owns a phone and needs information but is dissatisfied with the high cost of directory assistance. Jingle Networks has changed the industry by creating an exciting new media channel through 1-800-FREE411. With nearly 130 million annual calls, 1-800-FREE411 offers advertisers highly targeted and timely promotional opportunities to reach a large but targeted customer base who are ready-to-buy, garnering a response rate twice that of other direct response media. For more information, visit: www.free411.com.
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Deann Mayeda
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