Corporate
November 5, 2001
Brad Ball Named To Newly Created Position Executive Vice President, Domestic Corporate Marketing, Warner Bros.
(November 5, 2001 – Burbank,CA) - As part of a the Warner Bros.’ overarching cross-company marketing and brand enhancement initiatives, Brad Ball has been named to the newly created position of Executive Vice President, Domestic Corporate Marketing, Warner Bros., it was announced today by Alan Horn, President & Chief Operating Officer, Warner Bros.
Ball, who will continue to report directly to Horn, moves over to this key strategic post after having served as President, Domestic Marketing, Warner Bros. Pictures for the past three and a half years.
Ball’s mandate is to build new brands and franchises, while optimizing existing ones. His responsibilities include oversight of all the Studio’s brand marketing efforts, working with all Warner Bros. divisions (including Warner Bros. Pictures, Warner Bros. Television, Warner Bros. Animation and Warner Bros. Consumer Products). He will also be in charge of developing major multi-divisional third party promotional partners and cross-platform strategic marketing alliances. Additionally, Ball will serve as Warner Bros.’ day-to-day marketing and advertising liaison with AOL Time Warner and all AOL Time Warner divisions on the company’s integrated marketing initiatives, under the aegis of Barry Meyer (Warner Bros. Chairman & Chief Executive Officer) and Horn.
“With Harry Potter, the Matrix sequels, “Scooby-Doo,” and “Smallville” upon us, and with a new Batman, Superman, Looney Tunes, “Charlie & the Chocolate Factory,” “Cats & Dogs” and “Justice League” (animated television series) among the projects that are just over the horizon, it has become crucial that we have someone with big-picture marketing expertise and extraordinary organizational skills focusing on optimizing and nurturing our brands,” said Horn. “I can think of no one more capable of handling this extremely important role in our company than Brad.”
“We will look to Brad to help establish the overall strategic direction for our brands, as well as oversee the development and execution of the various brand-building programs,” continued Horn. “Equally important will be Brad’s key role in the AOL Time Warner cross-company advertising efforts. Brad has served us very well and we know he will continue to do so. He has not only helped make my role at the company a lot easier, but has also been integral to what looks to be the most successful year in Warner Bros. Pictures’ history.”
“I am looking forward to the challenge and to this wonderful opportunity,” said Ball. “While the average film can be extremely perishable, brands and franchises can last forever if properly attended to. Putting long-term goals and corporate initiatives ahead of short-term or individual needs is an absolute necessity for a global content company. One of our mandates will be to find the right balance between asset appreciation and value depreciation, between maximization and saturation and between exposure and overexposure. We will marshal our resources, maximize our opportunities, and traverse traditional and new media, while at the same time protecting and fostering our brands.”
To meet these corporate objectives and support Ball’s efforts, Warner Bros. Worldwide Corporate Promotions will report to Ball.
Ball joined Warner Bros. in May 1998 in his current position as President of Domestic Marketing for Warner Bros. Pictures. During his tenure at the helm of the domestic marketing department, Warner Bros. Pictures released such hits as “The Matrix,” “Analyze This,” “Miss Congeniality” and “The Perfect Storm,” and is poised to have a record-breaking year that will culminate with “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone,” “Affair of the Necklace,” “Ocean’s Eleven,” “The Majestic” and “Charlotte Gray.” Ball came to the company from McDonald’s, where he had served as Senior Vice President, Marketing, USA for three years. Prior to that, he was a partner in Davis, Ball & Colombatto, a west coast-based advertising agency, handling such important retail and entertainment accounts as McDonald’s, the ABC Television Network, KFWB and Toyota. # # #