• by Gavin O'Malley  @mp_gavin, December 20, 2006

In a time of upheaval for major Web players, CBS Interactive has named former Yahoo executive Michael Marquez as vice president of strategy and corporate development. Under Quincy Smith--recently appointed head of CBS Interactive--Marquez is tasked with bolstering all CBS properties with digital components through partnerships and acquisitions.

"We're figuring out how to make all of CBS's assets interactive," said Marquez, who left Yahoo about two weeks ago. "Going across the board from TV, radio, outdoor, we're looking to accelerate digital across all of those areas. In some cases acquisition will be the best way to do that."

Last month, Smith replaced Larry Kramer as president of CBS's interactive operations. Smith, a Silicon Valley insider who most recently worked for Allen & Co., is heading the newly formed CBS Interactive, which encompasses all initiatives and partnerships involving the Web, mobile, and video gaming. (Kramer is still attached to CBS in an advisory role.)

CBS Interactive includes CBS SportsLine.com, CBSNews.com and CBS.com, as well as innertube, CBS's home for original and established programming. The division is also charged with working with the company's financial team to identify new businesses that could complement CBS's core assets.

Marquez most recently served as director of corporate development at Yahoo, where he oversaw the acquisition of 15 companies, including Oddpost, Verdisoft, del.icio.us, Bix and Jumpcut.

"Mike has had a front row seat to most of the M&A and investment activity in Silicon Valley in the past couple of years," Smith said in a statement released Tuesday. "His relationships with the venture capital and entrepreneurial community will be invaluable as we continue to shape CBS's Interactive strategy."

Marquez will also work closely with CBS Interactive's chief development officer, Joseph Ianniello, to initiate investments and acquisitions, according to Smith.

Marquez is one of several Yahoo executives to have left the embattled company over the past two months. Earlier this month, chief operating officer Dan Rosensweig and media group head Lloyd Braun resigned amid major restructuring. Other recent departures include David Katz, head of Yahoo Sports and Studios; Bill Demas, senior vice president at the company's publisher network; and William Johnson, vice president and general manager of the group.

Beyond Yahoo, it has been a particularly tumultuous time for digital executives. Three key AOL executives just resigned: executive vice president, Jim Bankoff; Joe Redling, head of AOL's mobile, customer management and paid services businesses; and John Buckley, executive vice president for corporate communications.

And in November, Time Warner replaced Jonathan Miller with Randy Falco--then NBC Universal Television Group president and chief operating officer--to head up AOL. David Zaslav agreed to leave NBC Universal as president of cable distribution and new media for the CEO slot at Discovery Communications, which is busy formulating its own digital strategy. At about the same time, Viacom appointed Mika Salmi to head global digital media.

Before joining Yahoo, Marquez served as a banker at Robertson Stephens, a major Internet investment bank. Prior to that, Marquez was a founding member of the Internet Center of Excellence at Andersen Consulting (now Accenture), which at the time was charged with overseeing the firm's first foray into the Internet.