SiouxeSouixxeGuild Leader
Joined: 10 Sep 2012 Posts: 1212
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re: Daybreak Game Company’s John Smedley steps down as chief CEO
by Souixxe on Sun Jul 26, 2015 11:05 pm
H1Z1 and Everquest publisher Daybreak Game Company is getting a new boss.
John Smedley of Sony Online Entertainment at the GamesBeat conference in 2013.
Above: John Smedley of Sony Online Entertainment at the GamesBeat conference in 2013.
Image Credit: Michael O'Donnell/VentureBeat
John Smedley is stepping down as president and chief executive officer of Daybreak (the company that was once Sony Online Entertainment), the publisher confirmed to GamesBeat. Current chief operating officer Russell Shanks will step in as the new president of the company.
The CEO’s departure comes in the wake of a cyberattack that took many of his company’s game servers offline. But Smedley, who helped pioneer the massively multiplayer online model and free-to-play strategy on home gaming consoles, also isn’t gone for good; he is planning to take on a different role at the publisher in the future.
“I can confirm that John Smedley will be taking some time off from the company for the near-term and transitioning to a different role to be determined,” a spokesperson for Daybreak told GamesBeat. “Upon finalization of his plans, further communication will be provided.”
This transition comes at an interesting time for the executive, the company, and the wider industry at large. Smedley most recently made headlines for threatening to sue Julius Kivimaki, a cybercriminal and member of the cybervandal group Lizard Squad. One of the crimes that Kivimaki was partly responsible for was a bomb threat that grounded a plane that Smedley was flying on. Earlier this month, Kivimaki was convicted of more than 50,000 counts of computer-related crimes in Finland, but he didn’t receive any jail time, only a two-year commuted sentence.
Outraged by the perceived lack of punishment, Smedley took to Twitter to tell Kivimaki that he was “coming for” him. MORE HERE >>> http://venturebeat.com/2015/07/22/daybreak-game-companys-john-smedley-steps-down-as-chief-executive-officer/
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