Redbox Names Anne Saunders President

Redbox founder Gregg Kaplan, who has been serving as the video rental kiosk operator's interim president and also president and COO of corporate parent Coinstar, will leave the company in March to pursue new opportunities.

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Anne Saunders, who currently serves as executive vp and chief marketing officer at education firm Knowledge Universe, will take over the role of Redbox president at the end of August, the company said.

"Saunders brings to Redbox extensive executive experience across a variety of industries, including past senior leadership roles at Bank of America, Starbucks and AT&T," the company said.

She will report to Coinstar CEO Paul Davis.

"Anne is a true innovator and brand builder with extensive experience in developing and growing new revenue streams, business optimization and consumer marketing," said Davis. "Anne has had a positive impact everywhere she has worked, and on behalf of the entire board and management team, I welcome Anne to the Coinstar family."

The executive changes come as Redbox is about to launch a joint venture with Verizon that will combine physical and digital content offers expected to challenged Netflix.

Kaplan started Redbox in 2002 and sold it to Coinstar in 2009.

Said Kaplan: "We started Redbox in 2002 with only a few kiosks, and working tirelessly with the Redbox team - which I sincerely believe is the best in the business - we have transformed this industry and now boast more than 38,500 kiosks around the United States and Canada."

Email: Georg.Szalai@thr.com

Twitter: @georgszalai