PlayFirst, Inc., a leading publisher of emotionally engaging   interactive entertainment, today announced that social game industry executive Mitali Pattnaik has joined the company as General Manager, Social Games. In this role, Pattnaik is responsible for PlayFirst’s social gaming initiatives including the development and publishing of games for Facebook and other leading social platforms.  

Prior to joining PlayFirst, Pattnaik led the marketing and monetization efforts for social gaming at Electronic Arts, and directed online marketing efforts for the launch of The Sims™ 3. In this role, Pattnaik launched The Sims 3 Store, which housed virtual goods and products for The Sims 3. Before joining Electronic Arts, Pattnaik served as Senior Marketing Manager at Yahoo!, where she oversaw worldwide marketing for Yahoo! Search.  Pattnaik lead the launch of Yahoo! Video and directed the innovative Doritos and Yahoo! “Crash the Super Bowl” campaign.

“Social platforms are a natural fit for PlayFirst,” said PlayFirst CEO, Mari Baker.  “We have a history of publishing best-selling games for women, and can mine our catalog of great IP to bring well-known brands to the social platform.  We are already seeing a large crossover factor between our traditional PC download customers and those playing on Facebook and we expect this trend to continue.  I am excited to have Mitali on the team, and her experience in social games and monetization combined with tremendous leadership skills are a real asset to the company.”