Suranga Chandratillake, founder and CEO, blinkx
A technology entrepreneur with over a decade of experience in next-generation search, Suranga Chandratillake founded blinkx in 2004 and launched the company in 2005. After early success, Suranga took the company public on the London Stock Exchange in May 2007. Prior to founding blinkx, Suranga was U.S. CTO of Autonomy Corporation, responsible for growing Autonomy's research and development division in the United States. Before joining Autonomy, Suranga held a variety of roles in technology, sales and marketing at Morgan Stanley, netdecisions and anondesign. Suranga received his MA in Computer Science from the University of Cambridge.
A highly regarded expert on the convergence of the Web and TV, including the future of television, interactive TV and online advertising, Suranga is often invited to speak at leading industry events including Financial Times' Digital Media Conference, Cannes Lions International Advertising Festival and Monaco Media Forum. Named a Young Global Leader Honoree in 2009 by the World Economic Forum, Suranga has also been recognized as one of the top 10 leaders in Science and Innovation by The Observer's Future 500 list, and one of Digital Media Wire's "25 Executives to Watch in Digital Entertainment".
Jonathan Spira, Chief Financial Officer
A specialist in early-stage technology firms, Jonathan Spira has over 20 years experience building and managing media and technology companies for successful growth. Jonathan joined blinkx in 2008 from J. Phineas International, a business consultancy company he founded that offers advisory services in specialty areas including Strategic and Business Planning, Capitalization and Fundraising, Board and Investor Relations, and High-growth Operations. Previously, Jonathan served as chief financial officer at a number of private and public companies including Web start-up Kapow Technologies, wireless network company Packethop, application developer Atrenta, Web developer ePeople and Autonomy Corporation plc, where Jonathan spearheaded a successful $50 million IPO in 1998.
Jonathan has also held senior finance and planning positions at Walt Disney Co., PepsiCo Inc. and Nestlé Food Company, and previously worked as a consultant in Peat Marwick's Merger & Acquisition practice. Jonathan holds an MBA from Cornell University, and a BA in Economics from Kenyon College.
Matthew Service, Chief Operating Officer
Matt Service joined blinkx in 2006. Previously, Matt was a principal of Regent Pacific Management Corporation. From 1998 to 2006, Matt worked on 34 engagements in a variety of roles for software and technology companies, including director of Client Services and Operations for MicroEdge Inc., a division of Advent Software, COO and CFO of KTEH, director of IT for Clarent Corporation and director of IT for Auspex Systems. Prior to that, Matt was operations manager for NZGS. Matt holds a BA in Business Economics from The University of California, Los Angeles.
Matthew Scheybeler, Chief Technology Officer
Matt Scheybeler joined blinkx in 2004 as a technical director. He began his career at Autonomy Corporation, where he spent three years, advancing from programmer to team leader. While at Autonomy, Matt became highly proficient in rich media-related technology. Prior to joining blinkx, he founded his own consultancy firm, Automatic Software, where he worked with a variety of mobile and enterprise search companies. Matt holds a BSc in Artificial Intelligence and Computer Science from Edinburgh University.
Federico Grosso, Senior Vice President, Business Development
Federico Grosso is a digital media veteran with more than a decade of international experience. As blinkx's senior vice president of Global Sales and Business Development, he is directly responsible for blinkx's revenue generation efforts through advertising and content acquisition as well as the day-to-day operations of the company's sales organization. Since joining blinkx in 2004, Federico has led his team to create more than 350 media and advertising partnerships with some of the world's most popular consumer brands including Reuters, MTV Networks, RealNetworks, Nokia, Microsoft and Shell.
From 1997 to 2004, Federico held several positions within Yahoo!, where he launched Yahoo! Italia and the European Commercial Team. A well-respected expert on both online advertising and digital media, Federico has spoken at prominent industry events around the world including MIPTV and Digital Hollywood. Federico received his B.A. in Political Sciences from the University of Torino, Italy, specializing in Communications and Digital Media Publishing. He has also completed the Emerging Leaders Program in General Management at the London Business School.
Julia Blystone, Chief Marketing Officer
Julia Blystone joined blinkx in 2007 with over 12 years previous experience in communications. Julia was a vice president at OutCast Communications and has worked with a wide variety of hardware and software vendors including Autodesk, blinkx, Good Technology, Sun Microsystems and Wyse Technology. Prior to OutCast, Julia was a manager in Epicentric's public relations group and also ran public relations for Compaq's Telecommunications division while working at Blanc & Otus. Her public relations career began at GCI Group. Julia graduated cum laude from Middlebury College.
Frances Smith, Finance Director
Frances Smith joined blinkx in 2007. Prior to blinkx, Frances served as the vice president of Corporate Affairs at Autonomy from October 2005 to December 2006. Frances previously held the role of financial director at a number of early stage venture backed technology companies including Neurodynamics Ltd. and Nholdings Ltd. Frances also served in the corporate finance department of PricewaterhouseCoopers (Coopers & Lybrand) from 1992 to 1996 after completing her training as a chartered accountant in 1991.
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