Former WarnerMedia CEO Jason Kilar Joins Roblox Board

Former WarnerMedia CEO Jason Kilar has joined the board of directors of online gaming platform company Roblox. The appointment, which took effect September 13, will see Kilar join Roblox Chairman and CEO David Baszucki, as well as lead independent director Anthony P. Lee and board members Gregory Baszucki, Christopher Carvalho, Gina Mastantuono and Andrea Wong.

This appointment signals Roblox’s interest in expanding beyond gaming to become more of a general entertainment platform, given Kilar’s previous experience as a CEO of media and entertainment companies. entertainment for over 15 years, most recently as CEO of WarnerMedia. Prior to that, Kilar was co-founder and CEO of subscription video service Vessel, acquired by Verizon in 2016. He also helped co-found and served as CEO of Hulu, before announcing his resignation in 2013 when he then joined the group. board of directors of DreamWorks Animation.

Currently, Kilar serves on the board of directors of Wealthfront Inc. and Opendoor Technologies Inc. The executive also holds a bachelor’s degree in journalism and business administration from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and an MBA from Harvard Business School, the Roblox announcement states.

This addition comes at a time when Roblox’s user base is aging and the company is looking to cater to its slightly older demographic with new experiences.

At its annual developers conference, the company recently announced plans to offer avatar-based voice calls, as part of its broader initiative aimed at users 17 and older. During the conference’s keynote speech, Roblox CEO David Baszucki also suggested that thousands of adults will eventually meet and form real-life relationships through Roblox over the next five years.

The company also envisions a future in which users could leverage generative AI tools to create avatars or their clothing using text prompts. And the app is gaining traction in the world of virtual reality, where its Meta Quest VR app has surpassed one million downloads.

Roblox now has 66 million daily active users and noted that its 17+ group made up about 40% of its daily active user base last year. The company aims to cater to this group with virtual worlds containing more violence, romance, crude humor, depictions of gambling and drinking, she said. Perhaps that would make Roblox a company more focused on media and entertainment than its more kid-friendly games – like those in which you bake pizza, build theme parks, play pretend, or move through obstacle courses (aka obbys), or adopt adorable pets.

Kilar’s experience could benefit the company in these efforts, as well as the challenges of catering to different audiences from a single platform.

“Jason Kilar is a highly respected leader in the entertainment and media industry, and his experience in the field is valuable to the Board of Directors as Roblox continues to expand globally,” said the CEO of Roblox, David Baszucki, in a press release.

“I am honored to join Roblox, a company that I have long admired and cheered from afar as it looks to the future,” said Jason Kilar. “Roblox is changing the way people come together and changing the way creators can create enjoyable experiences for them. I’m excited to join the board and do everything I can to help bring Roblox’s vision to life.

On X, at Kilar news has solicited numerous congratulations, notably from analysts, investors and the media, as well as from Daniel Ek, CEO of Spotifywho called the move a “super combo.”