Reuters / Richard Brian
- Amazon is looking to hire a Corporate Development Senior Manager to oversee potential digital acquisitions.
- The job would seem to signal that Amazon is making a new push into digital media and advertising with deals.
- It’s a high-level gig that would entail interaction with CEO Jeff Bezos.
Does Jeff Bezos want some digital media under his tree? A recent job posting may serve as the Amazon mogul’s list for Santa.
Amazon is seeking a Corporate Development Senior Manager who will be charged with managing and executing acquisitions across the company, according to a LinkedIn post.
“There will be a particular emphasis on supporting transactions in the digital media, digital products and emerging technology sectors,” reads that posting.
That’s an intriguing emphasis, considering that when it comes to digital media and advertising, Amazon has generally been a builder, not a buyer. Indeed, as the company has quietly amassed a formidable digital ad business over the past few years – one that may see as presenting a legitimate challenge to the dominant Google/Facebook duopoly – Amazon has focused on building its own custom suite of advertising technology.
And as it elected to stream 10 NFL games this year, and deliver and track some ads during those games, it largely took the same approach.
The glaring exception, of course, is Amazon’s nearly $ 1 billion deal to acquire the live gaming platform Twitch in 2014. Amazon has continued to run Twitch separately from its growing advertising portfolio.
Business Insider spoke to Amazon’s top advertising executive last week during the Ignition conference – and he was coy about the company’s broader advertising ambitions.
But there’s little question Amazon is getting far more serious about ads. The question is, how big do they want to go in terms of making deals. One clue: the job means face time with Bezos.
This role is a highly visible position that interacts with Amazon’s most senior leaders including frequent interaction with Amazon’s CEO and CFO.
He/she will be required to handle multiple projects across a variety of business categories including digital media and digital products.
Besides getting time with the big boss, candidates should be able to spot a good deal. “Proving you are an effective negotiator is a critical part of this job.” Hey, it’s Amazon.
The question is, what might this person be negotiating for? Could he or she be on the hunt for:
- Ad tech startups?
- A company in the TV/video sector that would help Amazon bring more dynamic, digital-like functionality to traditional TV ads?
- Roku? (better hurry as the price keeps going up)
- A giant rival asset in the vein of Pinterest (with its seemingly highly complementary shopping-centric use-case)?
- Snapchat? Spotify?
- A TV company like Viacom or Scripps/Discovery?
When theoretically spending from Jeff Bezos’ checkbook, the possibilities seem endless.
Amazon did not respond to a request for comment for this story.
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