Former CBS Interactive Chief Jim Lanzone Connects With Tinder As New CEO

Jill Goldsmith
·3 min read

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Match Group has named former CBS Interactive chief Jim Lanzone CEO of its flagship dating app Tinder starting August 3, reporting to parent Match Group chief executive Shar Dubey.

Lanzone joins Tinder from investment firm Benchmark Capital where he served as an executive-in-residence. Until 2019, he was chief digital officer of CBS Corp. (now ViacomCBS) and President and CEO of CBS Interactive. He joined the company in 2011and led a digital transformation, launching streaming subscription service CBS All Access and free, ad-supported services CBSN, CBS Sports HQ and ET Live. Previously he was founder-CEO of video search and programming guide Clicker Media and chief executive of Ask.com.

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Viacom and CBS merged in December, 2019.

“Tinder is an iconic brand and an essential part of the dating experience,” Lanzone said in a statement. “We have an enormous opportunity to deliver on our mission, bring more people to the product and reimagine the user experience across different markets. I’m looking forward to working with the team and taking the brand to new heights.”

Tinder was introduced on a college campus in 2012 and has been downloaded more than 340 million times. It’s available in 190 countries and 40-plus languages. Tinder has more than 6 million subscribers and is the highest grossing non-gaming app globally, Match Group said.

It noted that Lanzone “is taking the helm at Tinder on the heels of another solid quarter, with double digit year-over-year revenue growth at Tinder despite the global COVID pandemic.” Match Group reports second quarter financial results August 4.

Match Group was created by Barry Diller’s IAC in 2006 and became its most valuable property. It went public in 2015 and just completed a spinoff off from IAC earlier this month. It’s got a market cap of $30 billion. Its other brands include Match, Meetic, OkCupid, Hinge, Pairs, PlentyOfFish and OurTime, “each designed to increase our users’ likelihood of finding a meaningful connection.’

“I’m very excited to welcome Jim to Match Group,” said Shar Dubey. “He has vast experience running complex global tech organizations, driving product innovation, integrating emerging media trends into bellwether brands and a proven track record of building subscription offerings and delivering results. Tinder still has so much runway ahead, and as we look to integrate video, roll out new features in various regions and accelerate our growth around the world, Jim will be a formidable leader for the company.”

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