Jon Grande
EVP, GM Online Services, Exponential Entertainment

Jon and the team at Exponential Entertainment are working on the next generation of social and casual games and their new service, HollywoodPlayer™, is in limited beta, scheduled for release in Q3 2009.

Prior to joining Exponential, Jon spent 17 years at Microsoft in a variety of management roles – as Executive Producer on several award winning games for Windows, Xbox and Xbox360, as well as managing relationships with Microsoft's top external development partners, including BioWare, Turbine, Gas Powered Games, and Marvel Enterprises. In 1994, while at Microsoft, Jon started the MSN Gaming Zone and later contributed to the strategies for both XboxLive and MSN Games.

After leaving Microsoft, Jon was co-founder of Blade Games, a venture backed development tools and integrated services company. In addition to his role at Exponential Entertainment, Jon is an advisor to PlaySpan, a provider of commerce services for massively multiplayer games.

Debater: Debate! Virtual Property Ownership, Thursday, 3:30 PM, Salon EF