Cellufun, the mobile virtual community known as "The World's Mobile Playground," announced the appointment of Neil Edwards, 43, as chief executive officer. Mr. Edwards' charge is to launch new revenue-generating services around virtual goods and messaging within the popular Cellufun social gaming community and to expand the company's mobile audience internationally.
Mr. Edwards brings to Cellufun more than 20 years of interactive experience and a strong track record, having run several notable brands for companies in the mobile, internet and content spaces. Most recently he served as the founding CEO of dotMobi, a mobile web services company, where he grew the company from a start-up to a multi-million dollar organization. At dotMobi he built a global customer base with multiple channel platforms and content partners that generated significant recurring revenue streams. Additionally, Mr. Edwards was instrumental in building a consortium of leading mobile brands including Nokia, Vodafone, Google, Telefonica, Telecom Italia, T-Mobile, Orascom, Microsoft, Visa and many others. Prior to dotMobi, he was instrumental in the growth of VeriSign and infoUSA, having served in senior leadership positions within both organizations. Mr. Edwards brings a unique global perspective to Cellufun stemming from his years living and working in Europe and from having launched two companies into China since 2002.
"For the past four years we have laid the technological groundwork at Cellufun to build the largest mobile social and gaming community in the world. We are thrilled that Neil has joined our team to help take this company to the next level of success," said Arthur Goikhman, co-founder and chief operating officer of Cellufun. "Neil's track record in the mobile industry is unparalleled, and we expect that Cellufun will experience the same growth, consumer adoption rates and revenues that Neil has been responsible for generating time and again throughout his career."
Mr. Edwards commented, "Cellufun is at the right place at the right time to take advantage of the growing demand for paid mobile community offerings such as virtual services and messaging. We have seen success with companies such as Facebook in the US and 10Cent in China who have monetized their engaged audiences beyond advertising with new services. Cellufun has one of the most engaged and rapidly growing mobile audiences in the world today. We expect this audience to consume virtual goods and messaging services quickly and to see our revenue from these services outpace our advertising revenues today."
Nilanjana Bhowmik, a partner in Longworth Venture Capital which invested in Cellufun, said, "We look forward to seeing Neil guide Cellufun as effectively as he led dotMobi and are eager to see him bring his experience to bear in the world of mobile social entertainment."
Mr. Edwards earned a bachelor's degree in Mathematics from The Citadel and completed graduate work at Duke University's Fuqua School of Business. He has also been a featured guest and mobile web commentator for CNBC, BBC, CNN and The Wall Street Journal. Edwards is also the father of two children and resides in New York City.
About Cellufun
New York-based Cellufun is one of the world's largest mobile communities where people socialize, play games, and buy virtual goods for self expression, gifting, and for competitive advantage. People around the globe can access the Cellufun platform on any mobile network, on any phone, and in over ten languages to create personal avatars, compete, collaborate, chat, and celebrate special occasions. Cellufun partners with global brands and media companies such as AOL and Gannet to deliver branded entertainment and custom-designed mobile marketing solutions. With over 200 million monthly page views, Cellufun offers a unique brand-building opportunity for media, marketers and agencies seeking to broaden their reach to the ever-present "third screen."