AT&T Inc.* (NYSE:T) named Brian Lesser to build and lead an advertising and analytics business using the company's unique customer data and growing content assets. Lesser will be CEO of the business and report to AT&T Inc. Chairman and CEO Randall Stephenson.

Lesser joins AT&T from GroupM North America, where he was CEO. GroupM is the world's largest media investment management organization, which applies data and technology to maximize the value of advertising for many of the world's largest companies.

"Brian is a terrific executive and one of the best there is in harnessing technology and data to create targeted advertising," Stephenson said. "Once we complete our acquisition of Time Warner Inc., we believe there is an opportunity to build an automated advertising platform that can do for premium video and TV advertising what the search and social media companies have done for digital advertising."

"Advertising is evolving from broad messages delivered through traditional media channels, to customized, individual content coordinated across all connected devices," Lesser said. "AT&T has amazing assets for creating engaging advertising experiences for consumers. I am excited to work with Randall and the entire AT&T team to build a world-class advertising and insights business."

AT&T's acquisition of Time Warner Inc. is currently under review by the United States Department of Justice and competition authorities in certain foreign countries.

*About AT&T

AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T) helps millions around the globe connect with leading entertainment, business, mobile and high speed internet services. We offer the nation's best data network** and the best global coverage of any U.S. wireless provider. We're one of the world's largest providers of pay TV. We have TV customers in the U.S. and 11 Latin American countries. Nearly 3.5 million companies, from small to large businesses around the globe, turn to AT&T for our highly secure smart solutions.