Zinio, LLC Names Mike Perlis Chairman
Publishing Veteran Expands Role to Serve as Strategic Advisor
Brisbane, CA (January 12, 2004) - Zinio, LLC, worldwide leader in digital magazine production, distribution and circulation, today announced the appointment of publishing and new media veteran, Mike Perlis, as Chairman of the Board. A managing partner at SOFTBANK Capital Partners, Perlis has served as an outside director to Zinio's board since the company's inception in March 2000. In his expanded role as non-executive board Chairman, Perlis will be responsible for board management and also serve as strategic and market advisor to the company.
"Mike has been a strong supporter of Zinio and advocate of digital publishing for years," said Mike Edelhart, President and Chief Executive Officer, Zinio, LLC "We are delighted to have someone of Mike's caliber intimately involved with the company and will leverage his expertise and unparalleled knowledge of digital publishing. His deep industry ties in both consumer and B2B publishing will bring greater awareness of the space and its benefits for publishers and advertisers."
Perlis has more than twenty years of experience as a top executive at leading magazine publishing and multi-media companies, specializing in building organizations that profitably manage brand development and maximization across multiple media delivery platforms. Perlis has held top posts at TVSM, Playboy, GQ, and IDG. He was group publisher at Rodale Press where he launched the Active Sports Network and co-founded Men's Health Magazine. Prior to joining SOFTBANK, Perlis was President and CEO of Ziff Davis Publishing, the pre-eminent authority on technology and the Internet.
"I've had the pleasure of taking part in a revolution of the publishing industry, led by market-leader Zinio's innovation, providing publishers resources that uniquely leverage valuable print assets," said Perlis. "I'm thrilled to work more closely with Zinio at this critical juncture in the company's development. Publishers are excited to take advantage of Zinio's unique circulation, advertising and distribution opportunities, resulting in new economies of scale. I look forward to helping Zinio continue to grow the category."
"Zinio already delivers more than one million magazines each month from 80 leading publications," noted Edelhart. "And that is just the beginning. Digital distribution and circulation are remaking publishing economics and ushering magazines into the electronic future. Zinio intends to be the driving force in this transformation."
Since March 2002, Zinio has delivered more than 13 million digital magazines from 80 popular titles, such as BusinessWeek, Motor Trend, PC Magazine, Popular Science and U.S. News & World Report, to nearly one million customers in more than 200 countries. Zinio's 30 major publishing partners include IDG, McGraw-Hill, Primedia, Reed Business Information, Technology Review Inc., U.S. News, VNU and Ziff-Davis.
