John Gentry, a longtime promoting govt and the chief govt officer of supply-side platform OpenX, died Wednesday night after a protracted battle with most cancers. He was 58.
A publish to Gentry’s LinkedIn profile Thursday night learn: “In case you are studying this, it signifies that I’m now not round and misplaced my struggle with most cancers. Whereas I’m dying sooner than most, I outlived myself by 28 years, due to a kidney transplant and trendy medication, and I’ve had a beautiful life. I’m a fortunate and grateful man.”
Gentry went on to specific gratitude for the many individuals he bonded with throughout the course of his profession, saying “the most effective a part of the trip has been all of the wonderful relationships I’ve fashioned over time.”
The corporate confirmed his dying in an electronic mail to ADWEEK.
Gentry was thought of a trailblazer in adtech, contributing to the innovation of header bidding within the mid-2010s and the evolution of supply-side identification expertise.
He was additionally a considerate chief, collaborator, and buddy to many.
“JG’s perception in me modified my life,” OpenX president Matt Sattel stated in an announcement shared with ADWEEK. “He was greater than a frontrunner to me. He was an advocate, a mentor, and a buddy. JG believed that doing the best factor and constructing a robust enterprise might go hand in hand, and confirmed us that it was doable to guide with each power and humanity, even when it was onerous. In difficult moments, he pushed me to suppose larger, act with readability, and put our individuals first. His profession and classes will stick with me all the time, and he might be deeply missed.”
A graduate of Northwestern College’s Kellogg Faculty of Administration and of UCLA, Gentry labored on the Walt Disney Firm within the Nineties, the place he directed distribution technique for ABC cable networks. He went on to carry numerous govt roles throughout the promoting and monetary companies industries, with stints as a senior vp and common supervisor at Overture (an early chief in digital promoting acquired by Yahoo for $1.63 billion in 2003), chief income officer of monetary companies firm Inexperienced Dot, and president of adtech startup Spot Runner—earlier than becoming a member of OpenX in 2012.
Gentry was appointed chief govt at OpenX in 2020, after years of serving the corporate as an advisor, and later, as its president. He steered OpenX by way of numerous hurdles, together with the disruptive entry of header bidding, evolving privateness rules, and an ongoing authorized battle with Google over antitrust allegations.
