LookSmart Appoints David B. Hills as CEO
SAN FRANCISCO, Oct. 18 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ --
LookSmart (NASDAQ:LOOKNASDAQ:
ASX:NASDAQ:LOK), an Internet search company, announced today that David Hills
has been appointed as the Company's Chief Executive Officer, effective October
25, 2004. Mr. Hills will succeed Damian Smith, who has served as interim CEO
since January 2004.
Mr. Hills, 48, has nearly twenty-five years of experience in media sales,
operations, and a wealth of interactive media experience in online advertising,
search marketing, paid listings and subscriptions. He has served as President,
Media Solutions for 24/7 Real Media (NASDAQ:TFSM) since August 2003, overseeing
all domestic media, search and technology businesses for the company. Prior to
joining 24/7 Real Media, he was COO and President of Sales for About, Inc.,
which owned About.com and Sprinks, the innovative pay per click service. Prior
to that, Mr. Hills held various media executive positions for subsidiaries of
Cox Enterprises, including Vice President, Sales for Cox Interactive Media,
which owns and operates a network of Web sites focused on local content; Vice
President and Director of Cox Interactive Sales, which operated an Internet
advertising network; and Vice President for Telerep, a television advertising
sales representation firm and a division of Cox Broadcasting. Mr. Hills
received a B.A. in Communications from Bethany College and an M.S. in
Communications from Boston University.
"I am thrilled to be joining LookSmart and leading the team in delivering high
impact and relevant paid listings to our advertising customers and search
engine partners," said Mr. Hills. "With the company's restructuring efforts
completed successfully, and a focused plan for returning to operating
profitability, LookSmart is in great shape to grow and expand its business,
taking advantage of a very robust search marketplace. We have superior
technology and business assets, coupled with the tremendous expertise of the
team in place, that provide a solid growth platform for the future."
"Dave Hills is a seasoned and highly successful leader, with demonstrated
experience in growing businesses through strong customer focus and disciplined
execution," said Terri Dial, Chair of LookSmart's Board of Directors.
"LookSmart is well-placed in a rapidly-growing industry, and the Board is
confident David will deliver on the promise that our unique technology assets
and business model hold. The Board would like to thank Damian Smith for his
effective interim leadership of the company, and wishes him every success as he
returns to pursue a promising business career in his native Australia."
About LookSmart
LookSmart is a leader in commercial search services and a developer of
innovative web search solutions. The Company provides consumers with relevant
search results through a distribution network that includes Lycos, CNET,
InfoSpace (Excite, MetaCrawler, Webcrawler), Cox Interactive, Apple's Sherlock,
U.C. Berkeley and LookSmart.com, while delivering high performance sales leads
at a reasonable price to online businesses. LookSmart is based in San
Francisco, California. For more information, visit http://www.looksmart.com/.
Contact: Jennifer Jarman
The Blueshirt Group
415-217-7722
DATASOURCE: LookSmart
CONTACT: Jennifer Jarman of The Blueshirt Group, +1-415-217-7722, or
, for LookSmart
Web site: http://www.looksmart.com/