FremantleMedia’s Olivier Gers Joins IMG

NEW YORK, June 27: IMG has
appointed Olivier Gers, previously with FremantleMedia Licensing Worldwide, to
the newly created positions of senior VP, global head of new media and co-head
of the new business unit IMG Entertainment.

Based at the company’s headquarters in New York, Gers will
co-head IMG Entertainment with London-based Alastair Waddington, the executive
VP of IMG Media. In his new role, Gers will further grow IMG's presence in the
digital media space and will help shepherd the company's entertainment
production. Specifically, he will focus on both online and mobile business
development and content creation across existing and emerging digital platforms
and devices. Gers will also oversee the extension of IMG's established sports,
entertainment and media properties.

Prior to IMG, Gers served as general manager at
FremantleMedia Licensing Worldwide, where he oversaw the digital and commercial
exploitation of FremantleMedia's brands around the world, including the Idol franchise (American Idol, Pop Idol),
The Price Is Right, Family
Feud, The X Factor, Danger Mouse, Prehistoric Park, Baywatch, Australia's Biggest Loser, Got Talent and Pokerface. He was
also responsible for industry-leading marketing partnerships and sponsorships,
developing innovative ways to extend these properties into the new media space,
including the American Idol PSMS
Challenge and Atomic Wedgie, a
mobile comedy channel that launched on the Sprint mobile network in 2006. Gers
was recently named Advertising Age's
2007 Entertainment Marketer of the Year for his work on the American
Idol franchise.