Roku expanded its board with the election of Jeff Blackburn, formerly Amazon’s top digital media and entertainment executive, at the company’s annual shareholder meeting Thursday.
Blackburn served as Amazon’s senior VP of global media and entertainment from May 2021 to February 2023, where he oversaw content businesses including Prime Video, Amazon Studios, MGM, Music, Audible, Games and Twitch. Before that, he was the ecommerce company’s SVP of worldwide business development, advertising and entertainment from 2012-20. He had first joined Amazon in 1998 after advising the company on its IPO.
“Jeff’s extensive experience in digital media and technologies makes him a great addition to our board of directors,” Roku founder and CEO Anthony Wood said in a statement. “I look forward to his contributions to Roku as we grow our leadership as the TV streaming platform of choice for more than 70 million households.”
Blackburn commented, “I’m thrilled to be joining Roku’s board of directors at such a pivotal time in the industry as more entertainment continues to move to TV streaming. I look forward to working with fellow board members and Roku’s leadership team to further the company’s mission of being the platform that truly connects the TV ecosystem around the world.”
Blackburn had left Amazon in February 2021 to join Bessemer Venture Partners, but returned a few months later to head up the company’s global media and entertainment organization. He then announced his plans to retire last December. “The last 18 months have been a thrill — working with all of you in [global media and entertainment] and launching some of our biggest, boldest projects ever in entertainment and sports,” Blackburn wrote in a memo to the Amazon team. “But I’ve decided to spend 2023 differently, giving more time to family, and feel strongly this is the right decision for me.”
Prior to joining Amazon, Blackburn was an investment banker, holding positions at Morgan Stanley and Deutsche Bank. He holds an MBA from Stanford Business School and a bachelor’s degree in economics from Dartmouth College.
