San Francisco – January 15, 2007. Bebo, the next generation social networking site, today announced that Joanna Shields, Managing Director of Strategic Partnerships for Google EMEA, has joined the company as President, International.
Bebo, which is backed by Benchmark Capital, has seen an enormous growth in user numbers since it launched in July 2005. It now has over 30 million registered members and is the third most popular social network in the US*. The 2006 Year-End Google Zeitgeist named Bebo as the number one search term, ahead of “MySpace” and the “World Cup”.Joanna will report to co-founder and CEO, Michael Birch, and will be responsible for expanding Bebo’s international business. The move marks a significant advance in Bebo’s commercial focus and plans for growth into other markets. Michael Birch, co-founder and CEO said of the appointment: "We're thrilled to welcome such a seasoned professional to our executive team. Joanna has a stellar track record in the online media and entertainment world and a proven ability to transform high-potential companies into high-growth businesses. She is an accomplished leader with an extensive network in the UK, Europe and beyond – this makes her the natural choice to take responsibility over all international matters at Bebo."Joanna Shields said: “There is a true revolution of personal expression underway and social networks provide a unique platform for people to communicate their hopes and desires and connect with others anywhere in the world in new and innovative ways. Bebo is at the epicenter of this phenomenon and has tremendous potential to connect its massive user base with media companies, brands and artists worldwide.”At Google, Shields was responsible for building and scaling the company's syndication network in Europe, Middle East & Africa and establishing all content partnerships essential for Google Video, Google Books and Google Earth and Maps. In this capacity, Shields orchestrated partnerships with some of the world's largest media and telecom companies, most recently leading Google's groundbreaking alliance with BSkyB in Europe.Shields' experience spans over 20 years, during which she has held key senior management positions in leading technology and internet companies, including Vice President, International, for RealNetworks, where she was responsible for all operations outside the US as well as launching the company's mobile business unit; CEO of Veon, a leading internet media technology developer, acquired by Philips Electronics; VP and Managing Director EMEA for Decru, acquired by NetApp; and VP of worldwide sales at Electronics for Imaging (EFI). - Ends -*About BeboBebo is the next generation social network that enables college, school students and alumni to stay in touch with their friends, find long lost friends and meet new people. Officially launched in July 2005, in just over a year, the San Francisco based social network has more than 30 million registered members viewing more than 5 billion monthly page views. According to third party sources such as Nielsen, Hitwise and Media Metrix, Bebo is the largest social networking site in the UK, Ireland, and New Zealand. Recent Comscore numbers rank Bebo as the third most popular social network in the US, based on uniques and pageviews, and show Bebo to have the highest engagement with 720 pageviews per unique user in August. Bebo is also considered the most ‘sticky’ social network as shown by data released in August by Media Metrix:Total MinutesAverage Minutes per Usage DayAverage Minutes per VisitorMySpace_US10,537,000,00021.8188.9Facebook_US1,973,000,00017.1 133.5Bebo_US561,000,00038.4230.1Bebo continues to grow rapidly in its other core markets and is currently the second and third most popular site in Australia and Canada respectively. It also secured the coveted ‘People’s Voice’ Award at the 10th Annual Webby Awards for ‘Best Social Networking Web Site of 2006’.Michael BirchCo-founder and CEOBebo’s CEO and co-founder Michael Birch has been the driving force and chief architect behind the development of six consumer web sites over the last decade. In 2001, he co-founded word-of-mouth marketing site BirthdayAlarm.com as a simple way to remember birthdays. The idea caught on, and today the site provides more than 47 million members an assortment of e-greeting cards and services. Following this, he started Ringo.com, one of the first social networking sites launched in 2003. The site was later sold to Tickle.com and is now owned by Monster.com. Birch has a BSc in Physics from Imperial College, London.Xochi BirchCo-founder and PresidentXochi Birch has co-founded several Internet community web sites over the last five years including BirthdayAlarm.com and Ringo.com, bringing a blend of technical and financial skills, as well as a strong entrepreneurial spirit to each role. Birch launched Bebo with husband Michael Birch in 2005, and is currently responsible for overseeing general operations and the day-to-day running of the company. She also oversees operations at BirthdayAlarm.com, a word-of-mouth marketing site with more than 47 million members. Xochi Birch has a BSc in Business Administration and Economics from St. Mary’s College, California. For more information on Bebo, visit its website www.bebo.comFor further information and images, please contact:Sarah Gavin, Communications Director,
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