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Message: IMS Names Harry Gray to Lead an Aggressive Sales and Marketing Program to Capita

IMS Names Harry Gray to Lead an Aggressive Sales and Marketing Program to Capita

posted on May 28, 2007 04:58PM
Posted: 5/28/2007 5:13:25 PM
News Release
IMS Names Harry Gray to Lead an Aggressive Sales and Marketing Program to Capitalize on IMS� Market Momentum

(Anaheim, CA; May 29, 2007)�IFE industry veteran Harry Gray has been named vice president of sales and marketing by solutions provider IMS with a clear mandate to achieve undisputed leadership in the portables market, content management services and wireless communications during the next 18 months, according to IMS chairman and CEO Joseph Renton. The appointment is effective immediately.

Most recently with Rockwell Collins where he managed Product Marketing, Gray supported both commercial air transport and business aviation markets. Gray entered the inflight entertainment arena in 1991 and includes sales executive experience with both Airshow and Matsushita Avionics (now Panasonic) before joining Rockwell in 1998.

According to Renton, Gray will be responsible for IMS� international sales efforts, marketing strategy, brand management, and strategic alliances for both the products and professional services divisions of IMS. Gray has more than 22 years of experience in senior sales and marketing positions within the aerospace industry. Previous positions within Rockwell also included the role of Director Worldwide Sales, responsible for all sales revenue and business development for the commercial air transport market.

�Harry�s 22 years of experience in both the commercial and business aviation sectors is very complementary to our current marketing objectives,� observed Renton. IMS enjoyed exceptional first quarter sales in 2007 with more than 4,000 units of its new ARCHOS-based portables sold, commented Renton. �But we need to capitalize on this momentum by maximizing every current opportunity,� he said.

Among Renton�s objectives for Gray is to move IMS from its current deadlocked position atop the portables market to clear and definitive leadership by the fourth quarter of this year, with similar objectives in wireless communications and content management in 2008.

Until recently, former IMS CEO Alan Pellegrini directly supervised IMS� sales activities, and is credited by Renton with overseeing remarkable growth by IMS during his two and a half year tenure. After Pellegrini moved to Thales, Renton assumed the CEO responsibilities alongside his responsibilities as chairman. By appointing Gray with specific sales and marketing focus, IMS signals an aggressive posture in the marketplace.

�IMS is established as an extremely innovative solutions provider,� says Gray, �and is in that stage of growth where it is entrepreneurial, creative, and cutting edge. I am energized by the opportunity to apply my experience to these types of innovative initiatives where we can leverage our momentum in portables, wireless, and content management to truly change the direction of the industry.

�It is the newer, bolder, free-thinking companies like IMS whose vision is unconstrained that will lead the way in the use of digital technologies in aerospace,� said Gray.

�It is more than simply selling portable devices,� said Gray, �but the application of portable technologies that is changing the traditional inflight entertainment environment. Opportunities exist not just in premium cabins and single-aisle aircraft, but also on twin-aisle configurations and throughout the entire aircraft. We will continue to drive forward by providing our purely portable systems, as well as more innovative solutions with the integrated portable and semi-embedded systems. The variety of solutions IMS provides should satisfy the needs of most airlines, and ultimately their passenger�s expectations.�

Among the opportunities that Gray emphasizes is the chance to take clear leadership in the portables market in 2007. �Despite the long list of companies with aspirations in the portables space,� says Gray, �two companies account for some 90% of cumulative sales in the portables IFE market. On the strength of IMS� first quarter sales, second and third quarter deliveries will have us neck and neck with our leading competitor in units deployed. It is now my mandate to leverage our new portables products and this current momentum to make IMS the clear market leader by the fourth quarter of 2007.�

About IMS: IMS is a solutions provider in the aerospace industry, with a focus in the inflight entertainment segment on portables, wireless communications, and content management. Founded in 1996 in Anaheim, California, the company currently services airlines, airframers and hardware systems providers with systems and software design, along with products and services. IMS� portables customers include American Airlines (three fleets), US Airways, and Northwest Airlines, along with a large number of international airlines. IMS leverages consumer-off-the-shelf (COTS) technologies in the development of IFE portables.

In Content Management, IMS offers fully integrated content supply chain services, providing�for example�ground-based integrated content supply chain services for American Airlines across three portables platforms, four fleets, and five total IFE platforms. American�s fully-integrated supply chain includes Terminal Data Loaders (TDLs) for content and data delivery on a bi-directional network. TDLs are embedded data loaders supporting multiple content ingest from removable media and wireless sources. See: www.imsinfight.com

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