The FierceVideo editorial team is proud to present its inaugural Emerging Leaders Awards, recognizing the brightest young professionals rising up the ranks of the streaming video and pay TV industry. Throughout the months of June and July we’ll be featuring these profiles with each of our finalists. We will announce the winners during our upcoming OTT Blitz Week of virtual panels happening during the last week in July.
James Whyte/Varnish Software:
James Whyte is VP of sales and general manager at Varnish Software, where he started as a territory manager in Scandinavia before moving to the U.S. He is responsible for developing and managing the company’s growth strategy throughout North America, including hiring and new customer acquisition. He recently led the company’s expansion into the new Los Angeles office to tap into the mid-market and bring the company’s technology closer to its U.S. enterprise customers to better help them scale to match consumer demand peaks and protect their critical infrastructure.
What his colleagues are saying:
“Since joining the company in 2013, James has played a pivotal role in Varnish Software’s growth, helping with the launch of our EMEA business and, most recently, leading our expansion into the U.S. His passion for our technology is evident in his work with new and existing clients alike, and we are very proud and thankful for his leadership at Varnish as we drive increased market growth.” – Lars Larsson, CEO at Varnish Software
Streaming Industry Q&A:
What streaming services do you subscribe to?
Like many people nowadays, I subscribe to multiple streaming services, but I’ve been a longtime customer of Netflix, Amazon and Sky.
What are your favorite shows you’re watching in 2020?
“Frontline Docs,” “When They See Us” and “Suits.”
What has been the highlight of your career so far?
I’ve been with Varnish Software now for more than five years, and during that time, I have had the opportunity to see the world and work with many global brands including Hulu, Sling and Twitch. I’m incredibly lucky that at 28 years old I’m not only working for a company whose technology I’m so passionate about but that I’ve been given the opportunity to lead that company into a new phase in the United States.
What’s next for you in terms of new challenges in streaming TV?
The streaming industry is constantly evolving and it is our job to continue to change with it to best support our customers. To keep up with growing consumer demands, we recently announced native TLS support for our platform, offering an industry-first 150 Gbps for each server to allow our customers to serve more data without the need to spend on additional resources. This is just the beginning, though. The continued development and rollout of 5G networks will put even greater emphasis on the need for reliable and fast delivery networks, as consumers expect significant performance improvements with higher bandwidth and lower latency. Our continued challenge will be to innovate and adjust our platform to best support our customers through these growing demands as 5G becomes a reality.