Pandora Names Roger Lynch As CEO/President

Roger Lynch

Pandora has named Roger Lynch as CEO and president, and a member of its board of directors, effective Sept. 18, 2017. Naveen Chopra, who has served as Pandora’s interim CEO since June 2017, will continue in his role as chief financial officer. In addition, Pandora announced it has also appointed current Snap Inc. chairman and former Sony Entertainment CEO Michael Lynton to its board of directors.

Lynch’s appointment comes after Pandora co-founder Tim Westergren stepped down from his role as CEO in June.

Pandora’s current chairman, Roger Faxon, said, “After a thorough and thoughtful search process, we are thrilled to have Roger join us as CEO and a member of our board. Roger brings a stellar leadership reputation, a wealth of consumer experience, and a lifelong passion for music to Pandora – all of which are critical ingredients in the continued evolution of our company. We are absolutely confident that Roger is the right leader for Pandora who can create value for shareholders by marrying Pandora’s numerous assets with the opportunities ahead. As I have said before, with ‘digital radio’ at the core of our business, and both ‘Plus’ and ‘Premium’ as new, integral parts of our arsenal, Pandora is now in an ideal position to leverage changing consumer behaviors to further expand and monetize our listening audience. We are very excited to welcome Roger as our CEO as we embark on our next chapter with renewed focus, a strong balance sheet, a strategic partnership with SiriusXM, and an incredible team of loyal and creative employees.”

As the founding CEO of Sling TV, Lynch led the creation, launch and growth of Sling TV to become the No. 1 Live OTT service in the U.S. Prior to Sling TV, Lynch served as executive vice president, Advanced Technologies, for DISH Network and EchoStar Corporations. Lynch also served as chairman and CEO of Video Networks International Ltd., a UK based IPTV provider. Prior to VNIL, Lynch was president and CEO of Chello Broadband in Amsterdam, Netherlands where he pioneered the widespread rollout of consumer broadband services across Europe, eventually creating what was, at the time, the largest broadband provider in Europe. Prior to that, Lynch was a technology investment banker with Morgan Stanley in New York, Silicon Valley, and London. Lynch began his career as a member of the physics technical staff at Hughes Aircraft Company. Lynch holds a Master of Business Administration with Highest Distinction from the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth College and a Bachelor of Science in Physics from the University of Southern California.

“I cannot imagine a more important and exciting time to join Pandora,” said Lynch. “With a massive, diverse and highly engaged audience, a market-leading digital advertising business, a best-in-class product portfolio and an extremely passionate and talented group of people, Pandora is well-positioned to capture an even greater market opportunity. As a lifelong musician and exuberant music fan, this is the perfect opportunity to combine my industry experience with my love for music. I look forward to working with this great team, having a lot of fun, and leading Pandora through its next exciting phase.”