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George L. Rose

From EverybodyWiki Bios & Wiki


George L. Rose
Born1961 (age 62–63)
🎓 Alma materUniversity of Michigan
💼 Occupation
Investor, Consultant and Philanthropist. Former Executive Vice President, General Counsel and Chief Public Policy Officer of Activision Blizzard, Inc.

George Rose (born 1961) served as Executive Vice President, General Counsel and Chief Public Policy Officer of Activision Blizzard.[1]

Early career[edit]

After graduating from University of Michigan in 1983 with a Bachelor Degree in Business Administration, Rose became one of the first immigrants from the former Soviet Union to attend Harvard Law School, where he earned a Juris Doctor degree in 1986.[2]

Rose started his career as a corporate entertainment attorney for Los Angeles firm Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, LLP. After three years, he moved to a firm now known as Glaser, Weil, LLP. where he worked on a variety of deals for MGM/UA Home Entertainment Group, MGM Grand Inc., and other entities owned by billionaire Kirk Kerkorian in addition to other corporate entertainment transactions such Sony’s purchase of Columbia Pictures and construction of the Stratosphere Las Vegas entertainment complex.

With the fall of the Iron Curtain in 1989, Rose and several friends founded Korbatov, Rose & Rubinstein, a law firm dedicated to transactions in the republics of the former Soviet Union. In 1995, after a brief stint at Katten, Muchin & Zaviz, Rose became one of the first legal department employees of Activision, which at that time had just emerged from bankruptcy. Since joining Activision, Rose became known as a veteran of the video game industry, responsible for many of its legal and business rules and conventions.

Work with Activision Blizzard[edit]

Since joining Activision, Rose has held various positions within business and legal affairs such as General Counsel, and later, Chief Legal Officer. In these roles, Rose was responsible for overseeing all aspects of the company’s legal strategy, including: acquisitions of more than a dozen studios; signing key licenses with Marvel Enterprises,[3] DreamWorks Animation SKG [4] and Tony Hawk; and development of properties such as Call of Duty and Guitar Hero. Following Activision’s merger with Vivendi Games in 2008, Rose became Chief Legal Officer of the combined company, Activision Blizzard. In November 2009, Rose was appointed Executive Vice President and Chief Public Policy Officer of Activision Blizzard,[5] where he was responsible for setting the course of the company’s government outreach and legislative efforts worldwide.[6]

Activision Blizzard paid Rose an annual salary of $541,451, his total remuneration for 2010 was $3,682,450.[7]

According to Activision's filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Rose retired from his active duties in September 2011 to pursue personal projects and interests but remained consultant to Activision's CEO, Robert Kotick, with whom he worked since he joined the company.[8]

Opposition to Schwarzenegger vs. EMA[edit]

In his role as Activision's Chief Public Policy Officer, Rose launched an outspoken lobbying effort against a California law enacted in 2005 that was intended to ban the sale of certain violent video games to children without parental supervision.[9] and would have created an exception to the First Amendment by banning the sale of certain violent videogames to minors. The 2005 law was the subject of the then pending U.S. Supreme Court case Schwarzenegger v. Entertainment Merchants Association.[10] The Entertainment Software Association, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the American Civil Liberties Union were among the many organizations urging the U.S. Supreme Court to strike down this law.[11]

Rose has long been a vocal advocate for the First Amendment rights of the video game industry, supporting efforts by the Entertainment Software Association to oppose and enjoin as unconstitutional similar video game legislation in over a dozen states from Michigan to Louisiana. To date, such laws have been deemed unconstitutional by every court that has considered them.[12]

In lieu of the proposed legislation, Rose and Activision are in support of the voluntary ratings system currently in place through the Entertainment Software Ratings Board (ESRB), a non-profit, self-regulating body that independently assigns ratings, enforces advertising guidelines, and helps ensure responsible online privacy practices for the interactive entertainment software industry.[13] In advocating for this ESRB Rose has said, “the industry's ratings partnership has been thoroughly tested and praised by the Federal Trade Commission as thorough and effective."[14] And in op-eds penned for The Orange County Register,[15] San Jose Mercury News,[16] Los Angeles Times [17] and San Francisco Chronicle,[14] Rose has argued that ESRB is more effective and efficient in preventing the sale of violent games to minors and in helping parents make informed decisions about the age appropriateness of games for their children than a “taxpayer-funded bureaucracy the state can't afford.” [6]

On March 17, 2011 at the Commonwealth Club in San Francisco, Rose debated Jim Steyer, founder and CEO of Common Sense Media, on whether the sale of violent video games should be restricted.[18]

Rose's views were vindicated when in Brown v. Entertainment Merchants Association (formerly titled as Schwarzenegger v. Entertainment Merchants Association)[19] United States Supreme Court struck down the 2005 California law. In a 7–2 decision, the Court upheld the lower court decisions and nullified the law, ruling that video games were protected speech under the First Amendment as other forms of media.

Charitable work[edit]

In 2011, Rose started The Rose Family Foundation, a non-profit organization dedicated to exploring use of video games and interactive products in education, medicine and social life. As one of his first projects, the Foundation sponsored in September 2011 the first ever symposium on the use of video games in diagnosis and treatment of various mental disorders. The symposium held in San Francisco on the campus of University of California was known as Entertainment Software and Cognitive Neurotherapeutics Society (ESCoNS) and successfully brought together over 200 interested scientists, members of the interactive industry, government and other interested parties.[20] Next meeting of ESCoNS took place March 13–15, 2013 at The University of Southern Caliofrnia in Los Angeles.[20] The meeting again attracted hundreds of pioneers in sciencntific, educational and industrial communities, that gathered to discuss topics ranging from brain placticity to virtual reality. In addition to The Foundation, the second gathering of ESCoNS was supported, among other parties, by National Institute of Health, The Robert Woods Johnson Foundation, International Mental Health Research Organization (IMHRO) and The University of Souther California School of Cinematic Arts.[20] The next meeting of ESCoNS is now in the planning stages for May 2015.

The Foundation also actively supported with financial assistance and lobbied the industry for support for the exhibit at The Smithsonian Museum known as The Art of Video Games.[21] Held at Smithsonian American Art Museum in Washington DC during March 16, 2012 to September 30, 2012, this exhibit traced the evolution of video games as an artistic medium and reinforces in the most positive manner the place video games now hold in the American art and culture. Following its conclusion in Washington the Exhibit went on tour at ten other venues across the United States between 2013 and 2016.

The Foundation is also a proud supporter of Web Wise Kids, a non profit organization devoted to education of children in the safe use of the Internet using video games as the medium of exchange.[22]

Currently the Foundation is in its third year of granting Fellowships at the University of Southern California School of Interactive Media for students who are interested in pursuing projects in the alternative use of video games directed to medical uses, education and social causes.

Personal life and Business Activities[edit]

After his retirement and until December 31, 2012, Rose served as an advisor to Activision's CEO Robert Kotick and a Chairman of Activision's Call of Duty Endowment,[23] an organization dedicated to finding employment for combat veterans returning from active duty. Rose also founded and is actively involved in The Rose Family Foundation, a charitable organization dedicated to advancement of alternative uses of video game technology for science, education and medicine.

In 2012, Rose started Suffolk Ventures, LLC, a seed to early stage financing and mentoring company/fund directed to star up enterprises using technologies in medicine and education. Among Rose's notable endeavors are:

Fingerprint, a company based in San Francisco that is the first kids' learning and entertainment platform, providing sharing and engagement opportunities between kids and grown ups across mobile devices and the web. Its network of quality edutainment apps is made up of first-party apps, as well as apps "fingerprinted" by third-party developers.

E-Line Media, a publisher of game-based learning products and services that engage, educate and empower, helping to prepare youth for lives and careers in the 21st century. E-Line works with leading foundations, academics, nonprofits and government agencies to harness the power of games for learning, health and social impact. In 2014 ELine and video game developer Upper One Games in conjunction with the Cook Inlet Tribal Council,[24] a non-profit organization that works with indigenous groups living in Alaska's urban areas.[25] teamed up on Never Alone, also known as Kisima Inŋitchuŋa, a puzzle video game. The player-character plays as the Iñupiaq girl Nuna and her arctic fox.[26] The game is scheduled for release in Q3 2014 on Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One. Never Alone (Video Game) was recently declared by Yahoo as one of the year's top ten family friendly games for Xbox 3, PlayStation 4 and PC.[27]

Akili Interactive Labs is developing the first therapeutic mobile video games. The widespread emergence of mobile technology has enabled this novel treatment modality, which represents an entirely new class of therapeutics. Akili’s hallmark is to combine cutting-edge neuroscience insights, rigorous clinical validation and state-of-the-art game mechanics. The result is highly-effective and highly-engaging products, built and validated for specific patient groups. Akili was co-founded by PureTech Ventures, (a technology development company tackling tomorrow’s biggest healthcare challenges), leading cognitive neuroscientists, and top-tier entertainment game designers – creating a team with high attention to detail with regard to both science and engagement. Akili's current main product is an ADHD treatment software.[28] Scott Kirsner of the Boston Globe wrote of Akili that, "Akili is pretty different from the typical PureTech project: the start-up has brought on board veterans of Lucas Digital Arts and Electronic Arts who have worked on games like Star Wars: The Force Unleashed and Medal of Honor.".[29] Rose was introduced tto Akili by Professor Adam Gazzaley, founder of Gazzaley Labs at UCSF and his colleague on the Board of Directors of ESCoNS.

Rose was one of the early investment supporters and advisor to Oculus VR, a virtual reality technology company founded by Brendan Iribe and Palmer Luckey. Their first product, still in development, is the Oculus Rift, a head-mounted display for immersive virtual reality (VR). In March 2014, Facebook agreed to acquire Oculus VR for US$2 billion in cash and Facebook stock.[30]

In 2014, Rose joined as a mentor and investor 'Amplify.la', a hands-on startup accelerator and entrepreneurial campus in Venice, California, famed Silicon Beach. Located in the heart of Los Angeles, Amplify is perfectly positioned—physically and programmatically—to help our companies thrive. Amplify has an unmatched team of investors, mentors and executives who are committed to helping our founders build their startups into strong, scalable, successful companies. Rose continues to mentor companies incubating through the Amplify.la system.

Rose lives in Los Angeles, California with his wife and two sons

References[edit]

  1. "George L. Rose Profile". Bloomberg Businessweek. Bloomberg Businessweek.
  2. "George L. Rose Profile". Forbes.com. Forbes.
  3. "Activision Expands Alliance Through New Licensing Agreement With Marvel". PR Newswire.
  4. "Activision and DreamWorks Animation SKG Launch New Multi-Year, Multi-Property Licensing Deal". PR Newswire.
  5. "Activision Blizzard Appoints Top Attorney George L. Rose to Newly Created Position of Chief Public Policy Officer". PR Newswire.
  6. 6.0 6.1 "George Rose Bio Page". Activision Blizzard.
  7. "George L. Rose Profile". Forbes.com. Forbes. Retrieved 26 October 2011.
  8. %5d%5d "Activision Blizzard Report on Form 8K" Check |url= value (help).
  9. "Schwarzenegger v. EMA". mediacoalition.org. 2010. Retrieved 2010-10-02.
  10. Chris Nuttall. "Court tests Californian law on video games". Financial Times.
  11. "Activision Blizzard Joins Broad Coalition Urging Rejection by the U.S. Supreme Court of California's Flawed Restrictions on Video Game Purchases". PR Newswire.
  12. "California Ban on Violent Videogames Violates First Amendment". Electronic Frontier Foundation.
  13. "Entertainment Software Rating Board Website". Entertainment Software Rating Board.
  14. 14.0 14.1 Rose, George (2011-06-27). "California ban of violent video games must go". San Francisco Chronicle.
  15. "George Rose: State video-game law onerous, unnecessary". OCregister.com.
  16. "SUPREME COURT SHOULD SCUTTLE STATE'S VIDEO GAME LAW". San Jose Mercury News.
  17. Markels, Gail; Rose, George (2010-12-01). "Fighting the Terminator on video games". Los Angeles Times.
  18. "Commonwealth Club Video Game Debate Footage". GamePolitics.com.
  19. Arnold Schwarzenegger, who was the Governor of California leading the appeal of a lower court decision, was succeeded by Jerry Brown as this case was pending.
  20. 20.0 20.1 20.2 "ESCoNS Home Page". Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; name "ESCoNS" defined multiple times with different content Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; name "ESCoNS" defined multiple times with different content
  21. "Home Page".
  22. https://www.facebook.com/webwisekids
  23. "Call of Duty Endowment Home Page".
  24. Farokhmanesh, Megan (May 9, 2014). "Never Alone's first trailer explains the importance of passing along wisdom". Polygon. Vox Media. Archived from the original on June 23, 2014. Retrieved June 23, 2014.
  25. de Matos, Xav (March 19, 2014). "Sharing legends with the world in Never Alone, a game inspired by Alaskan Native communities". Joystiq. AOL Tech. Archived from the original on June 29, 2014. Retrieved June 29, 2014.
  26. Karmali, Luke (May 8, 2014). "NEVER ALONE IS AN ATMOSPHERIC PUZZLE GAME EXPLORING CULTURE AND FOLKLORE". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on June 29, 2014. Retrieved June 29, 2014.
  27. "the-top-10-family-friendly-video-games-from-e3".
  28. Damian Garde (August 1, 2012). "ADHD-treating video game to chart FDA approval path". Fierce Medical Devices. Retrieved July 17, 2013.
  29. Scott Kirsner (March 7, 2012). "Boston-based Akili Interactive Labs developing therapeutic video games to enhance your cognitive functions". Boston Globe. Retrieved July 22, 2013.
  30. "Facebook acquires Oculus VR for $2 Billion: Gaming Headset platform". March 26, 2014. Retrieved March 26, 2014.

External links[edit]

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