Media Executive to Drive Growth and Expansion in TrafficCast’s Core Markets
Madison, WI, February 3, 2011 – TrafficCast International, Inc., a leading provider of digital traffic data and technology, today announced the appointment of Al McGowan, an executive deeply experienced in both traditional and new media and a pioneer of travel information services, as Chief Executive Officer. Mr. McGowan will join the company February 4th.
“We are most fortunate to have Al McGowan join the TrafficCast team. His vision and experience will accelerate the progress we’ve made at TrafficCast,” said Sona Wang, Chairman of the TrafficCast Board of Directors, and Managing Director of Chicago-based Ceres Venture Fund. “As a company, we have established aggressive goals and plans to become the clear leader in our industry and we are confident that Al’s leadership will help us meet, and exceed those goals.”
“TrafficCast’s approach to traffic information and its product offerings are truly unique, and I am excited to join an organization that has developed the most advanced technology in its industry,” said McGowan. “Traffic and travel information is advancing rapidly across a range of market segments. The interface of broadcast, interactive and mobile media is at a tipping point, freight and logistics markets are finally recognizing the ROI in travel time forecasting, and the public sector understands the critical nature of transportation data when infrastructure resources are so limited.”
“I like this industry, and I like the foundation we have at TrafficCast,” McGowan continued. “I am enthusiastic about this industry because of the dynamic nature of traffic content and the emerging distribution channels that can finally deliver on the promise of real time, actionable information. I believe TrafficCast is uniquely positioned to take advantage of the incredible potential in this market.”
McGowan brings more than twenty years of media experience to TrafficCast, including highly relevant roles in traffic and travel information content. In the 1990’s, Al was President of Shadow Traffic, an innovative leader in nationalizing the syndication of traffic reports heard on the radio. The company was purchased by national radio network Westwood One, where he became Chief Operating Officer (COO) of Traffic Services. In 1999, Al was one of the founders of Traffic.com, corporately known as Mobility Technologies, which revolutionized the presentation of traffic information on television, particularly through the introduction of roadside sensor technologies to enable graphic representations of traffic flows. Traffic.com was sold to Navteq, now part of Nokia, in 2006.
Most recently, Mr. McGowan was COO and then CEO of Redlasso, a cutting edge web video search portal for media, bloggers and viewers. Al serves on the Boards of Tango Traffic, which delivers traffic information through cable-based platforms, and the Comedy Exchange Association, a broadcast performance rights organization for comedians and comedy writers.
TrafficCast provides travel time forecasting, road speed data and other traffic-related information, with technology, applications and content based on advanced digital traffic data. TrafficCast powers both MotionX-GPS and TomTom, the top two traffic-enabled navigation apps on the iPhone, as well as a range of providers serving the interactive, mobile, enterprise and public sector markets, including Yahoo Maps, DeCarta, and Maptuit. TrafficCast BlueTOAD™ integrates a range of wireless technologies to monitor travel times, road speeds and route behaviors through detection of Bluetooth™ signals, with installations across the country. The company is based in Madison, Wisconsin, with offices in Philadelphia, Atlanta, Chicago and Shanghai.
Neal Campbell, the CEO of TrafficCast since 2008, was named Senior Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer of CDW, the technology products and services provider based in Vernon Hills, Il on February 1st.
For more information, see http://www.trafficcast.com.
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Contacts
Nick Kiernan
608-268-3927
