Andy Chen (business executive)
Andy Chen (business executive)
Andy Chen is a business executive and venture capitalist. He is most notably the founder and former CEO of Tidal (the music streaming service). He was also the CEO of Preview Networks, a content distribution network for marketing, PR and video promotion.
He is currently a venture partner at Vectr Ventures, a venture investment firm based in Hong Kong.
Early Life & Education
Andy Chen was born in Taipei, China and raised in California. He says hishad an international upbringing, which influenced his academic and professional background.
He graduated from UC Berkeley in 1999, triple-majoring in Architecture, City Planning, and Scandinavian Culture.
He continued his education by earning his MBA in 2003 from the Stockholm University. Graduating with distinct honors, his concentrations were in Global Management and International Marketing.
Career
Andy Chen started his career during the dot-com bubble in San Francisco. From 1997 to 1999, he held market leading positions in recorded music, music publishing, and merchandising for Universal Music and Interscope Records.
In May 1999, he left the music industry temporarily to become an Assistant Media Buyer for the advertising agency McCann Erickson Worldwide.
After that, he became a media strategist for Tonic360, a company that specialized in digital branding campaigns; it was acquired by J. Walter Thompson within a year of working there.
Over the course of his career, he has solidified his reputation in several digital-related industries:
He has held executive positions in the fields of data aggregation, digital marketing, and music.
He advises media, tech, and entertainment companies on global growth and product strategy.
He has had work experiences in Asia, US, and Europe, which has helped him develop a vast international business network.
He is also an investor and serves on the board of directors of companies centered around various elements of business.
Business Executive
Aegis Media (2005 - 2007)
Chen was the Global Digital Strategy Director at Aegis Media. There, he spearheaded interactive media planning for for Carat and Isobar Global Management in London and San Francisco. His clients included Philips, Renault, and Logitech.
MTV Networks / Viacom (2007 - 2010)
In 2007, Chen became Vice President of Digital at MTV Networks Europe (MTVNE). Based in London, he was responsible for creating digital solutions related sales, strategy, branded creative, and digital commercial ventures.
In 2008, he simultaneously started working with Viacom International. He worked at their innovation unit and collaborated with venture capital firms and emerging technology companies to identify and integrate emerging technologies into commercial partnerships.
Preview Networks (2010 - 2013)
From November 2010 to May 2013, Chen was the CEO of Preview Networks, one of Europe's largest digital content distribution networks for marketing, PR and promotional video content. With over 300 entertainment companies providing content on more than 2,500 online media destinations, Chen headed a platform that connected media owners with content owners.
He said the following at the NOAH Conference in 2012:
I think the big issue we have today (in 2012) is clearly audience fragmentation: too many devices, too many destinations, and people can get content from a lot of places. The way [Preview Networks] sees the content business is not so much about we're going to take over the large businesses. In fact, we're much seen as an enabler. So, we simply connect the content to the audience and distribute the content from one central location to thousands of other destinations and platforms.
He held the position until it was acquired by Rightster in March 2013 (now known as Brave Bison).
Aspiro / TIDAL (2013 - 2016)
In June 2013, Andy Chen joined Aspiro Group, a media technology company focused on digital music entertainment subscription and the foreshadowed parenting company of TIDAL.
In June 2014, when his career was being solidified in the media industry, Chen founded TIDAL. It was launched by Aspiro Group in August 2014, and acquired by Jay Z and Roc Nation in April 2015.
Reflecting on his first year in the company, he said:
[...] What we have proved (at TIDAL) is that people are still in the process of adopting streaming music and people are still in the middle of transitioning themselves from whether you have physical sales or iTunes downloads to now, a popular Silicon Valley term would be the shared economy.
In April 2015, it was announced that TIDAL's former CEO, Peter Tonstad, reclaimed the position of CEO.
However, Chen remained in the company until April 2016 as part of Aspiro.
Angel Investor
Andy is an angel investor and has held several board and advisor positions from start-ups in US and Europe, to VCs, and Fortune 500 public companies.
Board of Directors
Andy Chen has served on the Board of Directors for the following companies:
Nodes (chairman); June 2011 - December 2013
Videofy.me (Board Director); May 2012 - May 2014
Tattoodo (Advisor); December 2014 - March 2017
Adjust.com (Board Director); June 2012 - Present
Falcon Social (Board Director); July 2014 - Present
Iskilde (Board Director); November 2014 - Present
Unacast (Board Director); April 2015 - Present
Scrive (Board Director); July 2016 - Present
Linkfire (Board Director); August 2016 - Present
Personal Life
In his spare time, Andy Chen loves listening to music and DJing.