MySpace Promotes Friedman to SVP Ad Sales, West

MySpace promoted Shari Friedman to SVP ad sales, West, a new position at the company and one with oversight of its all-important entertainment-related ad sales.

Friedman joined in 2006 as VP, entertainment sales. She’s brokered deals such as a splashy campaign for “The Dark Knight” that included the first homepage takeover to follow a big redesign in 2008. In another campaign, “The Twilight Saga: New Moon,” users were prompted to RSVP to attend the movie directly within a display ad. When someone confirmed attendance, the action triggered ads on a MySpace profile page informing friends of that person’s New Moon activity.

Pre-MySpace, she spent six years at AOL, where she sold to entertainment clients and later became a sales director overseeing movie and TV industry campaign sales.

In her new gig, Friedman oversees branded sales to Western region advertisers and reports to Chief Revenue Officer Nada Stirratt.

Her promotion comes as MySpace struggles to demonstrate its continued relevance to consumers and brands in the face of Facebook’s astonishing growth. Last month, eMarketer forecast that Facebook will surpass MySpace in advertising revenues in 2010, one year earlier than expected.