Lang will fill a newly created position of senior vice president and general manager of Playboy’s mobile division under the company's entertainment group.
“[Mobile is an] important aspect of Playboy's strategy as we aim to provide Playboy content to our customers across all entertainment platforms,” Playboy Enterprises Vice President Jim Griffiths said. “Playboy content for mobile — such as ringtones, wallpaper and video clips — is available in more than 30 countries including Brazil, Japan and Germany.”
Adult content on mobile devices has seen sharp increases in those countries but the reality is that it brought in only $30 million in the U.S. last year and still has major hurdles to overcome, from content rating and age verification to lack of marketing channels.
Playboy’s appointment of Lang, who will be based in Los Angeles, may help the company break through mobile's U.S. barriers.
He most recently was a vice president at Sony Corp., where he helped build its mobile sector. Prior to joining Sony, Lang served as COO for a mobile marketing and production company in New York City where he was involved in launching the mobile offerings for Vibe and Spin music magazines, “America's Next Top Model” and promotions with the Grammy Awards Show.
He also has served as executive director for mobile at America Online, where he launched its download content storefront, its mobile music application and several marketing promotions involving Britney Spears, TLC, “The Lord of the Rings” and “The Matrix Reloaded.”
