John Burbank Named Chief Marketing Officer for The Nielsen Company

April 25, 2008- New York, NY- The Nielsen Company today announced that John Burbank has been appointed to the newly created position of Chief Marketing Officer, effective May 9, 2008.  Burbank, who is currently Chief Marketing Officer for AOL, will report to Susan Whiting, Executive Vice President of the Nielsen Company.

In his new position, Burbank will be responsible on a company-wide basis for the Company’s strategic marketing, business development, market insights, brand development, communications and knowledge management functions. 

“As we continue to integrate our world class research businesses under the well-known and trusted Nielsen name, we have created a new senior position to build our brand, and identify new businesses to support marketers,” Whiting said.  “John Burbank has considerable experience in leading major global brands.  He will have a key role in harmonizing Nielsen’s diverse products and building brand equity among clients, business partners, employees and other stakeholders.”

“As a marketer, I have used Nielsen products virtually my entire career,” Burbank said.  “Today, the company is at the center of some of the most exciting and far-reaching developments in understanding how new media impacts consumers and marketers.  The company has a remarkable and unique set of both traditional and new media assets -- I look forward to working with the rest of the Nielsen team to fully leverage the company’s opportunities.”

Burbank has extensive marketing experience.  At AOL he has been responsible for building brands and driving audience metrics in support of the company’s advertising business model. Prior to joining AOL, he served as Vice President Marketing at AT&T, and helped lead the business through the transition from AT&T Wireless, Cingular and then AT&T. Among his achievements, Burbank developed the "Signal Bars" advertising campaign, which was subsequently adopted by Cingular and the new AT&T.

Prior to AT&T, Burbank spent a decade at Procter & Gamble in brand management and finance.  As a Brand Manager on Pampers he led P&G's pioneering Internet efforts and established Pampers.com as the global centerpiece to a multi-platform 360-degree marketing program directed towards new mothers. 

Burbank began his career at the Chicago Tribune Company, where beginning as a summer intern, he managed the company's use of demographic segmentation tools from Nielsen’s Claritas to demonstrate the value of its readership to advertisers.

Burbank received a BA and MBA from the University of Chicago.

About The Nielsen Company

The Nielsen Company is a global information and media company with leading market positions and recognized brands in marketing information (ACNielsen), media information (Nielsen Media Research), online intelligence (NetRatings and BuzzMetrics), trade shows and business publications (Billboard, The Hollywood Reporter, Adweek). The privately held company is active in more than 100 countries, with headquarters in Haarlem, the Netherlands, and New York, USA. For more information, please visit www.nielsen.com.

 

 

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