Former IAB & Oath Exec Named COO of Comcast's FreeWheel

NEW YORK -- FreeWheel, a Comcast Company, today announced that it has named Carl Kalapesi as chief operating officer. In this new role, Kalapesi will oversee the company’s global business operations, supporting its three primary business units (FreeWheel Markets, FreeWheel Publishers and FreeWheel Advertisers). He will also lead and accelerate the company’s external and industry partnerships and ensure FreeWheel’s alignment and progress toward fulfilling key strategic portfolio initiatives. Kalapesi joined FreeWheel this month and reports to the company’s general manager, Dave Clark.

Kalapesi brings more than 20 years of experience working with industries spanning media, technology, advertising and economic policy across the U.S., U.K., Africa and Asia. He joins FreeWheel from Oath, a Verizon Company, where he was most recently vice president, global strategy and business operations. There, he successfully led a team to deliver on growth initiatives, operational and productivity improvements (including the AOL-Yahoo integration) and data-driven strategic projects.

He was formerly at the Boston Consulting Group (BCG) where he advised clients in the Technology, Media and Telecom space in the UK and USA. Kalapesi was also vice president, industry initiatives at The Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB), where he helped establish the industry body’s first Programmatic Council. Early in his career, Kalapesi was an economic advisor in international economic development working in Vietnam and Tanzania. He has published several notable industry reports and served as keynote speaker at industry events around the world. He holds a Master of Business Administration from INSEAD.

FreeWheel