Spotter Hires Damon Berger, Former Mattel, Fullscreen and What’s Trending Exec, as EVP of Biz Dev & Operations (EXCLUSIVE)
Spotter, a startup that pays YouTube creators cash up front for monetization rights to their video libraries, has hired digital media veteran Damon Berger as executive VP of business development and operations.
Berger most recently was chief marketing officer at kids and family entertainment company WildBrain. Prior to that, he served as VP, head of digital engagement for toy giant Mattel, and worked at now-defunct YouTube creator network Fullscreen (then owned by AT&T/WarnerMedia) as VP of global strategic partnerships.
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In 2010, Berger and Shira Lazar co-founded What’s Trending, a news network hosted by Lazar covering YouTube trends and personalities. Prior to that, he was director of digital marketing at 20th Century Fox and had worked as a creative development manager at ABC Studios.
At Spotter, Berger will focus on developing relationships with large-scale creators, lead strategy around developing partnerships with established brands and organizations, and help drive corporate growth opportunities. He started at the company June 1 and will split his time between Denver and Spotter’s L.A. headquarters.
“Damon has spent his career forging meaningful relationships within media and entertainment and we look forward to harnessing his experience to create even more value for the creators we work with,” Aaron DeBevoise, Spotter’s founder and CEO, said in a statement provided to Variety.
Berger commented, “I’ve long believed that creators are the future of the entertainment industry and it has been so exciting to work to empower creators over the past decade and accelerate that trend. I saw the impact Spotter was making on the creator level and within the broader ecosystem and knew it was a place where I could lend my passion and experiences to even further develop this industry.”
Berger is the latest addition to Spotter’s leadership team. So far this year, Spotter has hired Rob Gabel, founder of Tubular Labs and a Netflix alum, as chief strategy officer; Monica Khan, veteran of Meta and YouTube, as head of creator community; and Derek Reynolds, formerly global head of business affairs for YouTube Originals, as EVP of legal and business affairs.
Spotter was founded in 2019 by DeBevoise, who formerly co-founded YouTube content networks Machinima and StyleHaul. In February, the company announced $200 million in funding led by Japan’s SoftBank. According to Spotter, the financing gives it a valuation of $1.7 billion. The funding, along Spotter’s reinvestment into the business, gives it some $1 billion to spend with YouTube creators.
To date, the company has paid more than $450 million to creators and has deals with 200-plus channels, including MrBeast, Dude Perfect and Like Nastya.
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