Times Internet Ltd (TIL), the digital network of media company Bennett, Coleman & Co Ltd (BCCL), has appointed Gulshan Verma, former executive of online content discovery platform Outbrain as its new chief revenue officer (CRO). In his new assignment, Verma will be responsible for setting up strategies, direction and management of Times Internet’s revenue opportunities.
This is the first time that TIL has appointed a CRO.
At Outbrain, Verma was responsible for overseeing the India and South East Asia operations. Verma has earlier served as the CRO of digital marketing platform Komli Media, besides working with several companies including Yahoo!, EY, McKinsey and Associated Press.
“Times Internet can be among top three “must buy" digital players in India due to its combination of unique assets and scale,†said Verma in a statement.
TIL has been an active investor in several startups. Earlier this month, TIL acquired Get Me A Shop (GMAS), an enablement platform for small businesses, for an undisclosed amount.
It recently invested $15 million to acquire a majority stake in Taskbucks, a mobile-only marketplace that rewards users for completing micro tasks. In October, TIL became the newest investor in Jaipur-based Girnar Software Pvt Ltd, which runs auto portals CarDekho.com and Gaadi.com besides product discovery engine Pricedekho.com. The investment was part of a transaction in which TIL sold auto portal Zigwheels to Girnar for an undisclosed amount.
TIL also runs TLabs, an accelerator for technology startups. Founded in 2011, TLabs, is a startup accelerator as well as an early stage seed-fund for Indian internet and mobile technology startups. Since its launch ,it has helped accelerate 36 startups and has helped in funding 65 per cent of the companies in its programme with an average investment of $450,000.