Personal information:
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Full Name: Greg Canessa
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Contact Information: gc@sequence.xyz or @gregcanessa on Telegram
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Current Occupation: President & COO at Sequence (www.sequence.xyz)
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Country of Residence / Time Zone: US/Pacific
Core Competency:
Please identify ONLY ONE Core Competency where you demonstrate the strongest proficiency or mastery.
- Strategy / Operations Leader
Additional Information
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Provide specific examples from their experience to support your selection.
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GM and Creator, Xbox Live Arcade at Microsoft (2000-07): created the first console-based digital games ecosystem in history and delivered a $100M+ business for Microsoft. Wrote business plan, secured funding, staffed team, led product definition, shipped 75+ titles and worked with 90+ developers and publishers. Published 20+ titles under Microsoft Game Studios and developed numerous franchises, including Minecraft.
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Vice President, Mobile, Activision Blizzard (2011-14): built and ran the mobile division at the world’s #1 video game publisher as GM and head of studios. Shipped award-winning games based on the top-selling Call of Duty and Skylanders franchises, Pitfall!, Wipeout, and more for iOS and Android platforms. Managed three studios, demand generation, user acquisition and partnership marketing, platform partnerships, publishing (in partnership with Flurry) and team of 100+ with P&L responsibility.
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Project Director, Battle.net at Blizzard (2009-11): GM and head of product management and development for the next generation of Battle.net, Blizzard’s core AAA game service and social network serving 35M+ users worldwide. Successfully integrated new service into the StarCraft, World of Warcraft, and Diablo franchises. Drove social and community efforts, web presence and branding amongst other efforts.
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Vice President, Video Game Platforms, PopCap Games (2007-09): GM and commercial leader of PopCap’s non-PC games efforts. Brought PopCap’s top-selling franchises (Plants vs. Zombies, Peggle, Bejeweled, Zuma) to consoles and other platforms. Led product management, brand marketing and partnerships, and drove multiple studio M&A deals at the Series A/B stage. Now a division of Electronic Arts.
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SVP Studios & GM, GSN Games (division of Sony) (2014-17): GSN is a leading developer and publisher of social/casual games for various platforms with two top-20 grossing franchises on iOS and Google Play. Greg served as GM and studio head, managing and growing the company’s skill business and evolution, enabling competitive play of the world’s biggest and most popular mobile games for free or real money via a new casual eSports platform. Also managed internal and external development of other free-to-play mobile/social titles. Drove brand/product marketing, demand gen, UA, social/community, PR/comms, BD/partnerships and multiple M&A deals. Managed multiple development studios at various points and staff of 250+ with direct P&L responsibility.
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Global Director, Strategy & Business Operations, Games, Google (2017-23): Led key strategic, operational, marketing and studio functions for Google’s AAA cloud gaming businesses (consumer and SaaS), working closely with internal and external development partners. Managed product planning & strategy, go-to-market, analytics & insights, promotions, monetization, pricing and more with a global and diverse team. Also drove key initiatives for Identity/Account and Mobile within Google Core at the leadership level.
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Are you involved with any other networks from a governance perspective? If so, please list the DAOs and networks.
- No
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Do you work for a gaming related company? If yes, please list the company or companies you are employed by and confirm if this company intends on applying for any AGV programs?
- Yes, Sequence Platforms Inc., a web3 infrastructure platform built for gaming and other blockchain dapps. No intention to apply for AGV programs during council tenure.
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Please share any relevant links, bios, or publications showcasing your work.
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Greg is an accomplished and passionate executive leader with 30+ years experience in the gaming industry at Xbox/Microsoft, Battle.net/Blizzard, Activision, GSN/Sony, PopCap Games (acquired by EA), Google, and Apple. Today, he serves as President & COO at Sequence, the award-winning development platform for integrating web3 into games.
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Greg has spent his career focused on game platforms, publishing and ecosystem creation, and played a key role in the advent and proliferation of gaming innovations including multiplayer gaming, digital distribution, social gaming, matchmaking, cloud gaming, and free-to-play. He views web3 and blockchain as critical technologies that will transform the gaming industry. Some of his accomplishments include:
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Creator & GM of Xbox Live Arcade: pioneered the first console-based digital games ecosystem in history, shipped 75+ titles, worked with 90+ developers and publishers, published and developed numerous franchises, including UNO, Bejeweled and Minecraft. Also served in strategy and product development roles on Xbox and Xbox 360.
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Project Director of Battle.net: defined and led Blizzard’s core AAA game service and social network serving 35M+ users worldwide, successfully integrating Battle.net into the World of Warcraft, StarCraft, and Diablo franchises.
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Vice President, Mobile at Activision Blizzard: built and ran the mobile division at the world’s #1 game publisher as GM and head of studios, shipped award-winning games and franchises such as Call of Duty, Skylanders, Pitfall!, and Wipeout; managed three studios, user acquisition, platform partnerships, and publishing.
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Deep experience shipping and developing core AAA brands Call of Duty, StarCraft, Diablo, World of Warcraft, Sonic, etc., and indie/casual brands Tetris, Pac-man, Peggle, UNO, etc., with 35+ game credits.
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Global Director, Strategy & Operations, Games at Google: led key strategic, operational, marketing and studio functions for Google’s AAA cloud gaming business, and drove key initiatives for Identity/Account and Mobile within Google Core at leadership level.
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As a hardcore gamer who’s inspired by new technologies, innovations, and platforms that lower access barriers, drive new and awesome experiences for gamers, and create new business opportunities for developers, Greg believes web3 is the next disruptive technology to revolutionize gaming.
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In his current role as COO & President of Sequence, Greg manages a wide range of operational functions for the company, including finance, accounting, data analytics, operations, strategy, BD, GTM, M&A and marketing. He drives numerous initiatives necessitating cross-functional alignment, goal setting, and decision making in the highly dynamic web3 space. Sequence plays an instrumental role in delivering value to the Arbitrum ecosystem, helping to power key web3 games and support various Arbitrum Orbit chains with the Sequence infrastructure stack.
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Greg is also a founding member of the AGV council, where he has been instrumental in helping to set up and support the AGV operating team in a number of different capacities. He has been involved in most operational aspects of the program, providing guidance, expertise and networking contacts to support the partners and GM. Amongst his accomplishments, Greg drove the recruiting process for the AGV GM and founders, helped bootstrap PR/comms and other critical functions, and has brought a games industry operational perspective to both internal AGV operations as well as evaluation of prospective investments and portcos.
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Are you willing to complete appropriate non-disclosure agreements (NDAs), KYC requirements, and other necessary documents?
- Yes
References:
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Rick Johanson - Partner at AGV
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Michael Chang - GM at AGV
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Additional references available upon request
Disclosures
Other than Greg’s current role as a Founding AGV Council member, he holds no other roles with the Arbitrum DAO.
Declarations
By submitting an application, the applicant understands that any offer to join and hold a position in the AGV Council is contingent on the following compliance screenings and declarations:
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Successfully completing as well as maintaining updated all relevant non-disclosure agreements, KYC requirements, conflict of interest checks and disclosures, and other necessary documents
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Not currently, or within the last year, being a direct representative or full-time employee at a network competitor(s) (e.g., Solana, Polygon, Optimism)
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Being aligned with the community values listed in The Amended Constitution of the Arbitrum DAO, following the Code of Conduct for delegates, being committed to prioritizing the Arbitrum DAO’s needs, and acting in absolute good faith and utmost honesty to fulfill their duties to the best of their abilities.
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The applicant confirms that they have read and understood all the content within this form and that the information submitted is accurate and complete:
Yes