Penn Entertainment announced that it has appointed former Walt Disney Company president Aaron LaBerge as its new chief technology officer.
Mr. LaBerge will assume the role of CTO of Penn Entertainment on July 1. He will report directly to CEO and President Jay Snowden.
As CTO, Mr. LaBerge will be responsible for driving Penn's technology strategy and execution. He will lead a multinational team of engineers and serve as a key business leader for Penn Interactive.
Mr. LaBarge joins Mr. Penn after approximately six years at the Walt Disney Company. He most recently served as President and CTO of Disney Entertainment and ESPN. He also served as president and chief technology officer of Disney Media and Entertainment Distribution.
Prior to this, LaBerge spent six years at ESPN, again holding several senior technical positions. This includes his four years as Executive Vice President and his CTO.
Earlier in his career, Mr. LaBerge was co-founder and CEO of the software business Fanzter. This was after he spent more than five years at ESPN as senior vice president of technology and product development.
Additionally, he has worked at Walt Disney Internet Group, Starwave Corporation, and Renaissance Interactive.
LaBarge supports Penn with expansion of ESPN bets
An important part of Mr. LaBerge's new role at Penn State will be working on the continued expansion of the ESPN Bet brand in the United States.
ESPN Bet is the result of a $1.5bn (£1.22bn/€1.41bn) partnership between Penn and Disney's ESPN, the country's largest sports media brand.
ESPN opted to get into sports betting last August, signing a deal with Penn. Under the deal, Penn will operate his ESPN Bet, and ESPN will promote the app across its online and broadcast platforms.
By the way, ESPN Bet is a rebrand of Barstool Sportsbook, an existing sports betting app. Penn said he sold Barstool Sports to founder Dave Portnoy last August for $1.
ESPN Bet officially launched in 17 US states in November. The company has since moved to expand its reach, agreeing to acquire Wynn Interactive's New York sports betting license in February. This clears the way for Penn to launch ESPN Bet in the state later this year.
“I'm excited to join Penn Interactive's talented team and lead its technology strategy,” said Mr. Laberge. “Penn Entertainment is at the forefront of the rapidly changing gaming and sports media industry.
“I plan to use my experience at Disney and ESPN to make ESPN Bet an integral part of the sports fan experience.Together, we will push the boundaries and explore how fans interact with sports and gaming. We will redefine what is involved.”
CEO Snowden added: He has overseen a global organization of thousands of engineers, product developers, designers, technologists, and data scientists who have created some of the world's largest and most successful media properties. There is no better candidate to lead our Technology and Interactive division. future.
“I know Aaron is looking forward to working with our entire leadership team. He will continue to advance our company’s position as a leader in online gaming, sports betting, and digital sports media. .”