HIT Bolsters North American, Latin American Teams

NEW YORK, November 11: HIT
Entertainment has made several key appointments and promotions for its
businesses in North America and Latin America, all of which will be united
under one division, reporting to Pam Westman, the executive VP of consumer
products and home entertainment for the Americas.

Gary Krakower has been
named senior VP of U.S. licensing and live events, charged with oversight for
all consumer products licensing and
attractions, stage shows and live events for the company's portfolio of classic
preschool brands. Before joining HIT in 2007, Krakower was the VP of
international licensing and merchandising for Twentieth Century Fox.

Jeff Deverett has been
appointed senior VP of home entertainment. Deverett will oversee and set the
strategy for HIT's home-entertainment releases in North America, and also
manage cross-functional strategies between home entertainment, licensing, toys
and live events surrounding HIT properties. Deverett previously served as
Anchor Bay Entertainment's president for Canada and senior VP of international.

Serving as the VP of U.S.
retail development and marketing will be E.J. Minor. He will manage all
consumer-marketing initiatives across HIT's portfolio, and will oversee the
implementation and expansion of HIT's retail programs and promotions. Prior to
this, Minor was the VP of marketing for HIT ToyCo.

Andrea Carpenter has been
upped to VP for Canada, while Gabriela Arenas has been promoted to VP for Latin
American consumer products and retail development. Carpenter most recently
served as senior director of consumer products and retail development for HIT
in Canada. Arenas has been with HIT for two-and-a-half
years, previously working on the U.S. brand and international retail
development teams at HIT.

Rodrigo Piza retains his
position as VP of broadcast for Canada, Latin America and Hispanic U.S., but
will add Latin American live events and sponsorships to his responsibilities.
Prior to joining HIT, Piza served as general manager for the Locomotion
Channel, a joint venture between The Hearst Corporation and Corus
Entertainment.

"By uniting HIT
consumer products, home entertainment, live events, marketing and retail
development for the Americas into one division, we maximize opportunities across
all lines of business, strengthen our brands and provide more resources for our
partners," said Westman.
"Gary, Jeff, EJ, Andrea, Gabriela and Rodrigo are truly leaders in
their fields, and the company and its brands are lucky to benefit from their
expertise."

—By Kristin
Brzoznowski