One of Ford Motor Co.’s top connected vehicles executives has been hired by Pandora to help the streaming music company form partnerships with the auto industry.
Doug VanDagens, whose LinkedIn page says he joined Ford in 1986, began Monday as Pandora’s head of auto partnerships and strategy, the Bay Area company said. He is responsible for closing new partnership deals with automakers, aftermarket hardware suppliers, in-car software platform providers and companies involved in autonomous driving, ride-sharing and other auto technology, Pandora said.
VanDagens was Ford’s global director of connected services, a job that involved leading the development of connectivity platforms supporting autonomous and electric vehicles, over-the-air updates and apps that allow drivers to interact with their vehicles. He oversaw Ford’s launch of Amazon Alexa integration, Waze navigation streaming, Wi-Fi hot spot capability and AppLink/SmartDeviceLink products. He also was Ford’s executive liaison to SiriusXM satellite radio and serves as chairman of the SmartDeviceLink Consortium.
Last month, SiriusXM said it planned to acquire Pandora in a $3.5 billion transaction, expected to close in the first quarter of 2019.
“Pandora is committed to identifying new automotive opportunities to drive increased distribution, revenue, and engagement,” Dave Geary, Pandora’s vice president of business development, said in a statement.
Be the first to comment