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jeff blackburn retired.
s head amazonAfter more than 20 years with the retail giant and streaming platform, its global entertainment group will exit the company in January. The moves were announced Friday via an internal memo from Amazon CEO Andy Jassy and Blackburn himself.
The news comes a year and a half after Blackburn returned from a year-long sabbatical to assume a new role as head of the company’s global entertainment group, which includes overall oversight of the company’s music, audio entertainment, games and video.
After a busy week at Amazon, Blackburn decided to retire. The e-commerce giant this week fully integrated MGM into its executive ranks after buying the storied studio for $8.5 billion in May.Head of Amazon Studios Jennifer Salk oversees MGM’s film and television division, while the senior vice president Mike Hopkins Landing on premium cable network Epix and unscripted content. With Blackburn out, Hopkins will report directly to Jassy. Salke, who won MGM Films executive production, reports to Hopkins.
Before the break, Blackburn had been an important intermediary between Amazon headquarters, Amazon Studios and head Jennifer Salke, as Amazon Prime competed with Netflix and new Hollywood studios in an increasingly competitive streaming space.
With Blackburn retiring, Jassy said Hopkins will continue to lead Prime Video, Amazon Studios and MGM and will report directly to the CEO. Steve Boom will now add Audible, Twitch, and games to Amazon’s Music and Podcasts teams, reporting to Jassy.
Here is the memo from Jassy and Blackburn:
I want to share the news of Jeff Blackburn’s decision to retire from Amazon.
Jeff joined Amazon in 1998 after helping guide the company through its initial public offering at Deutsche Bank. Over two years, he did a lot of building work, including helping build our 3P marketplace, advertising, Amazon Studios/Prime Video and music businesses, and leading our A9/Search and CorpDev & BusDev organizations.
As you know, Jeff returned to Amazon last May to lead our Media & Entertainment business (Prime Video and Amazon Studios, Music, Podcasts/Wondery, Audible, Gaming and Twitch). Over the past year and a half, he has helped us achieve continued success in media and entertainment. To name a few successes, in its first season, Rings of Power broke all previous Prime Video viewing records and attracted more Prime sign-ups worldwide than any other previous content during its release window ; Compared to TNF’s linear TV results last year, Prime’s Thursday Night Football season 1 drove higher viewership across the board, including the important 18-34 demographic, with viewership up 20% from the previous season ; we recently completed and integrated the acquisition of MGM. Amazon wouldn’t be the same company without Jeff, and I want to thank him for his many contributions to the company’s current and future success.
We will use this time to make some adjustments to our leadership. Mike Hopkins, who led Prime Video, Amazon Studios, and MGM, will continue to lead these teams and report directly to me. Steve Boom, who has been leading our music and podcast teams, will now also oversee our Audible, Twitch, and gaming businesses – and report to me. Both Mike and Steve are excellent, experienced leaders, and I look forward to working with them (and their team) many more times.
The transition will take effect on January 1, though Jeff will remain at Amazon through early 2023 to help ensure a smooth transition.
Feel free to share the news with your team.
andy
Team, some news today:
I have worked closely with Amazon for more than 25 years since its IPO in 1997, and I plan to retire from Amazon in January. It’s been an exciting 18 months – working with everyone at GME and launching the biggest and boldest project we’ve ever had in entertainment and sports. But I decided to spend 2023 differently, give my family more time, and feel strongly that it was the right decision for me. Andy and I have been working on a transition plan, and he will share the details soon, so stay tuned.
The opportunity for Amazon in media, entertainment and sports has never been greater. I see exciting times ahead for all of you. Please know that I will always remain close… as a fan, mentor, and ambassador for Amazon’s creative business. I’m so grateful for all the close friendships we’ve had over the past 25 years, and all the teams, studios, streaming services, and businesses we’ve been able to build together.
Thank you, amazing Amazonians. –jblack
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