FreeWheel Grabs GroupM's Whitticom as Product Head

Comcast’s FreeWheel unit said it hired GroupM’s Jon Whitticom as chief product officer, effective this week.

Whitticom will oversee and define FreeWheel’s product vision, strategy, design and development, leading a global product team.

He will report to FreeWheel general manager Dave Clark and will be a part of its executive management team.

“Jon is the right product leader to drive FreeWheel’s next phase of growth,” Clark said. “He brings a unique blend of product management, subject matter expertise and proven credentials as a trusted, visionary leader. He also shares our conviction about the future of the video ecosystem and we’re very excited to welcome him into the FreeWheel family.”

At GroupM, Whitticom was executive VP of products for [m]Platform, a planning, analytics and digital services system. Before that he worked at another WPP unit Xaxis.

“FreeWheel’s track record of removing friction from the video marketplace and empowering publishers to better monetize content while also helping advertisers to more effectively engage consumers puts it in a unique position to address the industry’s needs,” Whitticom said. “I’m excited to work with Dave and the FreeWheel team to address advertisers’ demand for access to premium video and more sophisticated, data-driven TV activation capabilities.”

Jon Lafayette

Jon has been business editor of Broadcasting+Cable since 2010. He focuses on revenue-generating activities, including advertising and distribution, as well as executive intrigue and merger and acquisition activity. Just about any story is fair game, if a dollar sign can make its way into the article. Before B+C, Jon covered the industry for TVWeek, Cable World, Electronic Media, Advertising Age and The New York Post. A native New Yorker, Jon is hiding in plain sight in the suburbs of Chicago.