UMG Combines Digital & Physical Sales

UPDATED: The distribution arm of Universal Music Group has expanded its executive team and eliminated any division between physical and digital sales and marketing services. 

Promotions include Amanda Marks to EVP and GM, Laura Saez to SVP of Sales and the appointment of Mitch Rotter to VP of Marketing for Universal Music Distribution. All report to Jim Urie, President & CEO of UMD.  Both Marks and Saez come from the digital division and Rotter joins Universal from Tumbplay. Their appointments reflect the shift in importance of digital over physical formats across the music industry.

From The Press Release:

“With the appointments of Amanda, Laura and Mitch, along with the continued efforts of Gabriel Levy (VP, Product Development), UMGD will be even better positioned to maximize all of the opportunities from the many new revenue streams generated by our artists, while being even more innovative and aggressive on behalf of our physical and digital partners,” stated Mr. Urie. “Our partners want a frictionless environment where they can move easily between physical and digital offerings. So the demand for our market-leading full suite of services is at an all time high. This new approach will capitalize on that demand by providing our partners with a competitive edge in the market.”

Most recently, Ms. Marks served as Executive Vice President & General Manager of Digital Distribution for UMGD.  With this promotion, she will now oversee activities for UMD, the division of UMGD responsible for the distribution, both physical and digital, of UMG’s recording labels.  Prior to joining UMGD, Ms. Marks served as Executive Vice President of eLabs, UMG’s new media and technologies division.  She will continue to report to Mr. Urie. Formerly, Ms. Marks helped launch Jimmy and Doug's Farmclub.com, where she served as General Manager, responsible for its daily operations including finance, business and legal affairs, business development and human resources. In its time, farmclub.com was a frontrunner in interactive convergence — an innovative company which integrated a web site, television show and record label. Jimmy and Doug's Farmclub.com was a subsidiary of Universal Music Group. Ms. Marks’ background also includes stints with UMG’s Business & Legal Affairs Department, Mercury Records, Rock-It Cargo USA, Viscount Airlines and their affiliated companies. She also worked as an associate with the law firm of McKenna & Cuneo in Los Angeles.

Ms. Saez had served as Vice President of Sales for UMD. In this new role, she will head the account management and sales teams, reporting to Ms. Marks. Formerly, Ms. Saez served as Vice President of Digital Strategy and Sales for Rhino Entertainment. She also possesses an extensive background in digital, marketing and new media strategies.  Her tenure at Rhino as Vice President of Digital Strategy and Sales, and Senior Director of New Media Marketing, as well as time with Warner Bros. Records and Time Bomb Records, mark her years of experience in the music business.

Mr. Rotter joins the company from Thumbplay, and will oversee label marketing and consumer marketing for UMD. He will report to Ms. Marks. Prior to joining UMD, Mr. Rotter was Senior Vice President of Content Acquisition and Strategy for Thumbplay, where he was responsible for the company’s overall content, merchandising, and storefront strategy. He also oversaw Thumbplay’s numerous media, marketing and content partnerships. Formerly, Mr. Rotter served as Senior Vice President of Music Development and Soundtracks for New Line Cinema, responsible for monetizing New Line’s music assets and overseeing music supervision and soundtrack releases for the studio while launching its first record label, New Line Records. He has also held positions at Capitol Records and American Recordings.