SEATTLE—Two prominent mobile messaging firms announced leadership changes.
First up, Mobliss tapped a longtime console-gaming executive in an effort to create space on the wireless gaming playground. The company said Jim Merrick, a former Nintendo Co. Ltd. executive, will take the reins as Mobliss’ president and chief executive officer.
Mobliss, an Index Group Company, is looking to expand from text messaging (the firm famously powers “American Idol” text message voting) to wireless games and other entertainment applications.
Consumers “love to play video games and they love to communicate instantly in many different and edgy ways,” said Merrick, whose roles at Nintendo included heading their hardware, software and marketing efforts in Europe. “Growing this is my sole focus.”
Mobile 365, a Chantilly, Va.-based company, named former Iridium head Gino Picasso as its new CEO. Picasso’s resume includes an MBA from the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton Business School and a master’s in computer sciences from the University of Maryland.
“The mobile space is tremendously dynamic and exciting, and I am thrilled to join such a seasoned team and company,” Picasso said.
