Los Angeles-based digital rights technology platform Pex has hired Jim Griffin as Vice President of Digital Rights.
Griffin, an industry veteran and Pho List founder has previously served as CTO of Geffen Records, CEO of Cherry Lane Digital, and President of Network Licensing at Warner Music Group.
Griffin has also been a consultant and advisor to Nokia, WIPO and SoundExchange.
Griffin’s expertise in copyright has also led to his status as an expert witness on copyright issues before the US Senate and House Judiciary Committee.
The veteran executive is the co-founder of the Pho List, which started over 20 years ago as a weekly meeting at Los Angeles restaurant Pho 87, where Griffin and others discussed the digital transformation of the music industry and is now a large online community.
Pex announced last month that it has secured a $57m investment round, which was joined by existing investors with additional participation from Tencent, Tencent Music Entertainment, the CueBall Group, NexGen Ventures Partners, Amaranthine, and others.
“I’ve been following Pex closely for years and have watched it grow from just a vision to its current state as the best-in-class identification technology.”
Jim Griffin
Griffin said: “I’ve been following Pex closely for years and have watched it grow from just a vision to its current state as the best-in-class identification technology.
“I’m enthralled to be part of the company that will bring long-awaited transparency and real-time copyright licensing to social media and other user generated content.”
“As a recognized expert in the areas of copyright, metadata, and music licensing, Jim will be an immediate and invaluable asset.
Bob Barbiere, Pex
Bob Barbiere, Senior VP of Digital Rights at Pex, added: “I’m very excited about the addition of Jim to the team.
“As a recognized expert in the areas of copyright, metadata, and music licensing, Jim will be an immediate and invaluable asset.
“He has worked closely with the world’s top rightsholders and content distribution companies and comes with an intimate knowledge of the the regulatory dynamics driving the US and EU copyright reforms we are now witnessing.”Music Business Worldwide