For the American journalist and businessman, see John Hampden Pleasants.
John F. Pleasants
Birth dateAugust 19, 1965 (age 61)
Birth placeWilmington, Delaware, United States
Alma materYale University, Harvard Business School
OccupationEntrepreneur and business executive
Known forLed a number of digital media and technology companies

John Pleasants is an American technology and media executive, entrepreneur, investor, and board director. Over the course of his career, he has held leading roles across digital media, interactive entertainment, mobile technology, e-commerce, and consumer products, including at The Walt Disney Company, IAC, Ticketmaster, Electronic Arts and Samsung Electronics.

Pleasants served as CEO of Ticketmaster from 1999 to 2005, during a period of rapid growth in online ticketing and digital commerce.[1] He later served as co-president of Disney Interactive, helping lead the division’s expansion into mobile gaming and digital distribution.[2]

He has served on the boards of several public and private technology and media companies, including Expedia Group, Ticketmaster, Peloton, and Leaf Group.[3][4][5][6][7]

Early life and education

John Pleasants was born on August 19, 1965, in Wilmington, Delaware. He graduated from St. Paul's School in Concord, New Hampshire in 1983.[8] After receiving his bachelor's degree at Yale University in 1987,[9] Pleasants obtained an M.B.A. from Harvard Business School in 1993.[10][11]

Career

Early career and Ticketmaster / IAC

Pleasants began his career in consumer products in 1988 at Hygiene Industries and subsequently PepsiCo / Frito-Lay before moving into digital media during the early growth of the commercial internet.[12]

He joined CitySearch in 1996, which later merged with Ticketmaster, where he held several senior executive roles including president and CEO from 1999-2005.[1][13][14] During his tenure, Ticketmaster expanded its online ticketing and digital commerce operations as the live entertainment industry shifted from phone and retail distribution to internet-based ticketing.

Pleasants also served as President of Information Services for IAC during this time.[15] He led a number of expansive acquisitions and integrations including Match.com, Active Network, and Evite.[16][17][18]

Digital health, media and gaming

In 2005 Pleasants assumed the role of CEO of Revolution Health.[19][20] In 2008, he joined Electronic Arts, where he served as president of publishing and COO.[21][22] His work focused on global operations, digital distribution, online services, and mobile gaming during a broader industry transition from packaged software and console-centric gaming to digitally distributed and live-service entertainment models.

Pleasants then became CEO of Playdom, a social gaming company acquired by The Walt Disney Company for $563 million in 2010.[23][24][25] Following the acquisition, Pleasants became co-president of Disney Interactive,[2] which he helped bring from significant losses to material profits with titles like Disney Infinity.[26][27][28][29]

In 2013, Pleasants was recruited by Samsung Electronics as executive vice president of Media Solutions, where he focused on mobile software ecosystems, digital media partnerships, connected services, and consumer engagement platforms tied to Samsung's Galaxy mobile business.[30][31][32][33][34]

Connected home technology

In 2016, Pleasants joined Brava Home as co-founder and CEO.[35][36] Brava developed an intelligent countertop oven that cooks with light, which first launched in 2018.[37] Brava was then acquired by The Middleby Corporation, a leading foodservice equipment company, in November of 2019.[38] In 2023, Pleasants co-founded HomeBoost, an AI-powered home energy and management platform.[39]

Board and advisory service

Pleasants continues to serve on the boards of AI, technology, media, and consumer companies. His board service has included roles with Expedia Group, Leaf Group, Ticketmaster, Peloton, Displate, Amber, HomeBoost, and other AI-powered technology companies.[4][5][6][7]

Civic and nonprofit involvement

Pleasants is involved in philanthropic, civic, education, and humanitarian initiatives, including serving as founding member and regional board member of Leadership Now Project.[40]

Recognition

HonorCompanyYear(s)
Sports Business Journal's Forty Under Forty AwardTicketmaster2002, 2003[41]
Business Insider's The Silicon Valley 100 AwardPlaydom2010[42]
TechCrunch's The TechFellow Awards NomineePlaydom2010[43]
NEA's Award for Outstanding LeadershipDisney2011

Personal Life

Pleasants is married with three children and lives in Silicon Valley, California.[44]

References

  1. ^ "Ticketmaster Online-CitySearch Names Charles Conn Chairman of the Board; John Pleasants Becomes Chief Executive Officer." PR Newswire. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Aug. 2015.
  2. ^ "John Pleasants, James Pitaro Named Co-Presidents, Disney Interactive Media Group". The Walt Disney Company. 2010-10-03. Retrieved 2026-05-19.
  3. ^ "John Pleasants: Executive Profile & Biography." Bloomberg.com. Bloomberg, n.d. Web. 15 Aug. 2015.
  4. ^ "FORM 8-K (S.E.C.)". IAC. February 4, 2002. Retrieved May 19, 2026.
  5. ^ "SEC FORM 4". www.sec.gov. Retrieved 2026-05-19.
  6. ^ "SCHEDULE 14A (S.E.C.)"
  7. ^ "John Pleasants - CEO at Brava Home Inc.". THE ORG. Retrieved 2026-05-19.
  8. ^ "Winter 2019 Formnotes 80s". St. Paul's School Alumni Horae. Retrieved 2026-05-19.
  9. ^ "Alumni Directory." Yale Alumni Association. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Aug. 2015.
  10. ^ "John Pleasants: Executive Profile & Biography." Bloomberg.com. Bloomberg, n.d. Web. 15 Aug. 2015.
  11. ^ "HBS Alumni Resources." Harvard Business School. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Aug. 2015.
  12. ^ Ault, Susanne. "The Last Word - A Q&A With John Pleasants." Billboard 1 Nov. 2003: 100. Google Books. Web. 15 Aug. 2015.
  13. ^ "Ticketmaster Online-Citysearch and Ticketmaster Corporation Close Transaction; Combined Companies Are Renamed Ticketmaster." News Release. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Aug. 2015.
  14. ^ Holson, Laura M. (2000-11-22). "Deal Announced to Reunite The Ticketmaster Operations". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2026-05-19.
  15. ^ "John F. Pleasants". The Washington Post. 2005-09-19. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2026-05-19.
  16. ^ "Ticketmaster buys Match.com, splits into 2 units". CNET. Retrieved 2026-05-19.
  17. ^ "Ticketmaster CEO Takes Board Seat With The Active Network". info.activenetwork.com. Retrieved 2026-05-19.
  18. ^ Randolph, Ned (2001-03-09). "Ticketmaster to reign over Evite.com". MarketWatch. Retrieved 2026-05-19.
  19. ^ Shin, Annys. "Revolution Invests in Convenient Care." Washington Post. The Washington Post, 06 Oct. 2005. Web. 15 Aug. 2015.
  20. ^ "John F. Pleasants". The Washington Post. 2005-09-19. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2026-05-19.
  21. ^ Sridharan, Vasanth. "Electronic Arts Names Pleasants COO." Business Insider. Business Insider, Inc, 17 Mar. 2008. Web. 15 Aug. 2015.
  22. ^ Martin, Matt (2008-03-17). "John Pleasants joins EA as president of Global Publishing". GamesIndustry.biz. Retrieved 2026-05-19.
  23. ^ Martin, Matt (2009-06-19). "Playdom snaps up Pleasants as CEO". GamesIndustry.biz. Retrieved 2026-05-19.
  24. ^ Takahashi, Dean (2009-06-19). "No. 2 Electronic Arts exec John Pleasants on his defection to hot startup Playdom". GamesBeat. Retrieved 2026-05-19.
  25. ^ Barnes, Brooks & Miller, Claire Cain (2010-07-28). "Disney Buys Playdom in $763 Million Deal, Becoming Hollywood Leader in Social Games". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2026-05-19.
  26. ^ Evangelho, Jason. "Disney Infinity: A Revealing Interview with John Pleasants of Disney Interactive." Forbes. Forbes Magazine, 17 Jan. 2013. Web. 15 Aug. 2015.
  27. ^ Barnes, Brooks (2014-01-17). "Disney’s Troubled Gaming Unit Finds Success With Infinity". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2026-05-19.
  28. ^ Richwine1 Nayak2, Lisa1 Malathi2 (June 12, 2014). "Disney sees Infinity game's retail sales hitting $1 billion". Reuters. Retrieved May 19, 2026.
  29. ^ Miller, Daniel. "Disney Interactive Co-President John Pleasants Resigns." Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles Times, 11 Nov. 2013. Web. 15 Aug. 2015.
  30. ^ "Meet the new faces of Samsung in Silicon Valley". CNET. Retrieved 2026-05-19.
  31. ^ "John Pleasants: Executive Profile & Biography." Bloomberg.com. Bloomberg, n.d. Web. 15 Aug. 2015.
  32. ^ "Samsung Announces New Executive Appointments Across Strategic Growth Areas." Business Wire. N.p., 10 June 2014. Web. 15 Aug. 2015.
  33. ^ Cheng, Jonathan. "Samsung Plucks Execs From BlackBerry, Disney, Nokia." Digits RSS. N.p., 11 June 2014. Web. 15 Aug. 2015.
  34. ^ "How Samsung plans to fix its Galaxy Apps store". CNET. Retrieved 2026-05-19.
  35. ^ Loizos, Connie (2016-09-20). "True Ventures just led a $12 million investment in still-stealth Brava". TechCrunch. Retrieved 2026-05-19.
  36. ^ Wolf, Michael. "What Do We Know About Stealth Smart Kitchen Startup Brava? | The Spoon". thespoon.tech. Retrieved 2017-02-20.
  37. ^ Fabricant, Florence (2018-12-03). "Meet the Easy-Bake Oven for Grown-Ups". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2026-05-19.
  38. ^ Connie Loizos "[1]"
  39. ^ Bluemner, Paul (2024-10-30). "HomeBoost Raises $4M Seed Funding". citybiz. Retrieved 2026-05-19.
  40. ^ "Team". Leadership Now Project. Retrieved 2026-05-19.
  41. ^ "Forty Under 40: Past Winners." SportsBusiness Daily. N.p., 12 Mar. 2012. Web. 15 Aug. 2015.
  42. ^ Sai. "THE SILICON VALLEY 100." Business Insider. Business Insider, Inc, 08 Dec. 2010. Web. 15 Aug. 2015.
  43. ^ Arrington, Michael. "Nominate Outstanding Innovators Now For The 2010 TechFellow Awards." TechCrunch. N.p., 24 Nov. 2010. Web. 15 Aug. 2015.
  44. ^ "Winter 2021 Formnotes 80s". St. Paul's School Alumni Horae. Retrieved 2026-05-19.