Jeff Anderson Gone?

[MaddyFF]

AC Warcry New Article (http://www.warcry.com/news/view/77595)

Turbine has undergone a corporate shake-up, according to sources within the company and some quiet edits to their own website. The official company page now lists Jim Crowley as President and CEO, removing all mention of Jeff Anderson.

The move comes suddenly, as WarCry interviewed Anderson only last week at DigitalLife and saw no indications. There is no word on how or why he left at this time.

WarCry was not able to get official comment on the move from Turbine as the changes were discovered outside of business hours. We will continue to follow this story as it develops.

[Thadda Al-Munik]

http://www.mmorpg.com/newsRoom.cfm?bhcp=1&bhhash=1#8887

i just logged on too to congrat crowley, but i cant find any of his posts, lol.

[Kid]

Wow, did Crowley get the job? Congrats.

So I guess they'll be a new AC1 Producer in the upcoming weeks?

[Kid]

Wrong Crowley :p.
It's JIM Crowley, not DAVE "Crowley" Javier. Two different Crowley's working at Turbine. Blah

[Snow Angel]

Did Jim Crowley work at Turbine previously? I couldn't find any info on him with regards to Turbine.

[Septa Scarabae]

Did Jim Crowley work at Turbine previously? I couldn't find any info on him with regards to Turbine.

Probably not. I bet he was hired from the outside, similar to how Jeff Anderson was. It's possible Jeff Anderson may have even been offered a better job.

[Acidboy]

Quote from another site on a forum:

"This move was forced by MWY (Midway Games). From my nextdoor neighbor...who happens to head the department at MWY that controls MWY...subs are at 68% of expected for this point in the games lifespan. The short list that was handed to Turbine from MWY ranked the top 6 issues identified associated with customer support. Of these six, four were in game customer support issues that resulted in over 2500 accounts being canceled by users. (IE half million duckets). As with most call centers Turbine threw the contract back at Midway and said..we are satisfying it. Once talk about "reorganizing" the game management was put ont he table the change in management at Turbine was necessary to quell the "rebellion".

So if there are new faces in game..that we might be experiencing..I'll give you 4 guesses why they ended up in AC."

[Thadda Al-Munik]

Oh man. If it is a different crowley, i feel like an idiot then cuz i pm'd him the grats and everything. :( Still, the amount he and everyone else inputs into AC, they should be given better positions after a while.

[Gustaive]

Quote from another site on a forum:

"This move was forced by MWY (Midway Games). From my nextdoor neighbor...who happens to head the department at MWY that controls MWY...subs are at 68% of expected for this point in the games lifespan. The short list that was handed to Turbine from MWY ranked the top 6 issues identified associated with customer support. Of these six, four were in game customer support issues that resulted in over 2500 accounts being canceled by users. (IE half million duckets). As with most call centers Turbine threw the contract back at Midway and said..we are satisfying it. Once talk about "reorganizing" the game management was put ont he table the change in management at Turbine was necessary to quell the "rebellion".

So if there are new faces in game..that we might be experiencing..I'll give you 4 guesses why they ended up in AC."

Oh yeah. The guy with the all-knowing neighbor/cousin/uncle/friend.

[Septa Scarabae]

Oh yeah. The guy with the all-knowing neighbor/cousin/uncle/friend.

That post was on ACVault, and I still doubt Midway would have the push to do such a thing. On another note, the profile for the new CEO can be found here:
-: http://www.linkedin.com/pub/3/72a/640

Last job was a 1-year stint at VeriSign, where he served after they acquired his previous employer, m-Qube.

So he's got experience with selling companies.

And now he's CEO of Turbine.

Who's looking to buy?

[Thadda Al-Munik]

well, it looks like he has no experience with games.

[Neco]

Well.. being the CEO I'd be more worried about his experience with... running a company ;)

Pretty sure even those CEO's out there who are game savvy have a few people below them that help make the real decisions like what direction to go in and all that.

[Frelorn]

Link (http://www.turbine.com/index.php?page_id=20&pagebuilder[module]=sitearticle&pagebuilder[display_item]=53)

WESTWOOD, MA - October 5, 2007 - Turbine, Inc., one of the largest privately-held online game companies in North America, announced today changes in its management team designed to position the company for long-term growth. Jim Crowley has been named president and CEO. The move is one of many that Turbine has recently made to invest in new talent that will drive the next wave of the company’s growth including the addition of industry veterans Craig Alexander as Vice President of Product Development and Walt Yarbrough as Executive Producer.

Founded in 1994, Turbine is one of the first companies dedicated to creating massively multiplayer online role playing games (MMORPG). Over its 13 year history the company has grown from a small contract developer offering one of the first 3D online role playing games to an industry powerhouse operating three successful franchises. Crowley had been working with Turbine’s management team for a number of months on a long-term strategic plan designed to build on the success of the company’s most recent hit The Lord of the Rings Online™ before being named president and CEO. He will lead the efforts to maximize opportunities for Turbine’s roster of franchises, as well as seek new revenue streams through a range of strategic initiatives already underway.

Crowley brings a wealth of operational experience to Turbine. As Chief Operating Officer of m-Qube, Crowley helped turned m-Qube into one of North America’s largest mobile media companies. Prior to m-Qube, Crowley was Chief Operating Officer of Network Plus, Inc., one of the country’s largest publicly traded competitive telecommunications and data providers. Crowley is a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania Law School and Connecticut College.

“I’m excited to have the opportunity to play a role in Turbine’s continued growth and success,” commented Crowley. “Turbine has an incredible team, industry leading technology and a portfolio of franchises that are without peer. I look forward to working closely with our entire team and our global business partners to continue to invest in, and accelerate, our domestic and international success.”

As both a creative and technological innovator, Turbine has created three award-winning online entertainment franchises -- Asheron's Call®, Dungeons & Dragons Online™: Stormreach™, and The Lord of the Rings Online™: Shadows of Angmar™. Turbine’s most recent title, The Lord of the Rings Online (www.lotro.com), has quickly become the second largest MMORPG*. MMORPG are a particularly hot segment of the video game industry as an increasing number of consumers turn to virtual worlds and online games for entertainment.

[Acidboy]

In May of 2006, VeriSign, Inc., (NASDAQ: VRSN), the leading provider of intelligent infrastructure for the networked world acquired m-Qube. VeriSign’s market-leading portfolio of managed communications and content offerings, combined with m-Qube’s expertise in mobile content enables companies to launch compelling services for their customers that drive new revenue streams and improve customer loyalty.

m-Qube, a leading mobile channel enabler, helps companies, develop, deliver, and bill for mobile content, messaging and applications. m-Qube’s end-to-end technology platform, carrier relationships and value-added services empower consumer-facing companies and their service providers to take advantage of wireless as a content delivery, marketing and communications channel.

[Acidboy]

Info and site for Network Plus Inc.

http://www.infohouse.com/

and

http://center.spoke.com/info/p6Jk0ly/JimCrowley

[BARTZ]

wow. does this mean better customer service and better game content than what we got now ? or does this just mean the new guy gets paid less than the one that just left ? c'mon i know u wanna do it.. hit me with that ban stick 8P.