Trion boosts management team with online vets

Former NCsoft West president of publishing, David Reid, and former Sony Online Entertainment executive Scott Hartsman have taken new roles at massively multiplayer online developer and publisher Trion.

Reid becomes senior vice president of publishing and will lead Trion's marketing, sales, corporate communications, brand managements and market research. Reid oversaw the Western marketing launch of six different MMOs at NCsoft, including the recent Aion. Previously he has served as vice president of marketing at GameTap and was director of global platform marketing for the launch of the original Xbox.

Hartsman will join Trion as chief creative officer and general manager of the company's Redwood Shores Studio, where Reid will also be based. Hartsman has contributed to more than 40 online titles and held key positions throughout the EverQuest franchise. He has overseen the development of MMOs specifically for a social networking audience.

"Both David and Scott are dream additions to the Trion team", said Lars Buttler, CEO of Trion World Network. "Their online gaming expertise and proven track record will help propel Trion ahead from technology development to content and publishing."

"I am very excited to be working with the talented and dedicated team at Trion," said Hartsman. "Trion is positioned extremely well to succeed in the next generation of online gaming. I'm happy to come on board in Redwood Shores to help deliver the most compelling MMO experiences and to collaborate with all of the Trion studios to introduce genre-leading games."