Yahoo Loses Connected TV Leader Patrick Barry. Is Bartz Paying Attention?

Yahoo is losing another executive today. Patrick Barry, who heads up Yahoo’s Connected TV group, sent out an email to staff this morning (reproduced below) informing them that he is leaving at the end of the month to “move on to new projects.” According to the email (below), he is briefing staff right now. (Josh Jacobs, head of ad technology platforms, is also leaving).

Update: Barry confirms via email: “i am leaving yahoo. too much opportunity out there not too.”

Through a series of deals with TV manufacturers like Samsung and Sony, the Connected TV product brings Web widgets from Yahoo to your TV. As such, it is a pretty central part of Yahoo’s strategy to connect consumers to the Web and the information that matters to them most.

Yet one former Yahoo executive I spoke to says Bartz has never even seen the Connected TV product. Whether or not that is true, losing executives heading up the products meant to extend Yahoo’s reach beyond the PC is an indication that her attention is elsewhere.

Update: A Yahoo spokesperson also confirms: “We are conducting a search for a new head of Connected TV, which we hope to announce shortly. We remain committed to building upon the innovation and leadership the team has delivered in the connected TV category.”

Here is Barry’s email:

From: Patrick Barry
Date: Sun, 11 Oct 2009 19:01:01 -0700
To: Connected Team
Cc: Tapan Bhat, XXX
Subject: Moving on

Connected TV Team,

After 5 great years here at Yahoo, it is time for me to move on to new projects and aspirations. I am tremendously proud of all we have accomplished together, from defining the world’s best user experience for interactive television, to shipping our technology platform on millions devices with some of the biggest brands in the industry. You have been an amazing team, and I will treasure the great times we have had working together to overcome challenges and make an impact for Yahoo. I remain a big believer in our vision for the future of television, and I would not be leaving now if I didn’t have faith in your ability to continue to achieve our goals and extend that vision.
Thank you for the hard work, passion and commitment over these several years. I will miss you all.

I will continue to be here through the end of the month to help make sure our plans and partnerships stay on track. Please join Tapan and I on Monday morning at 9:30 in Chutes so we can answer any questions you might have about my transition.

Patrick