• by April 30, 2007

Mochila, the online media marketplace for print, audio, video and photo content, has tapped interactive media veteran Craig Calder as its chief marketing officer. Calder comes to Mochila from TheStreet.com, where he was senior vice president of marketing.

Calder also held executive posts at DoubleClick, New York Times Digital and Nickelodeon Online.

Calder is charged with devising a strategy for recruiting more buyers to the global content syndication startup. Mochila offers a content service that enables publishers of magazines, newspapers, wire services, and Web sites to buy and sell print, photo, audio, and video content à la carte and on-demand with each other online.

Members who use the Mochila AdMatch ad revenue-sharing service are able to acquire high-quality content for free with advertising revenue split among the buyer, the content owner, and Mochila.

"I think everyone knows we're at a very interesting time in the [online] market but a lot of people realize they're missing content," Calder said. In order for online startups to get the scale they need to hit their revenue targets, "they need content and an easy and efficient way to get it."

Calder acknowledged his experience on the publisher side of the equation and just how challenging it was to license content. Of Mochila, he said: "We're taking the friction out of the content transaction."

"I will try to come in and set the road map on how we position ourselves to the buyers and what is the benefit proposition to get somebody to come and use Mochila as a content resource," Calder noted. "The first thing we have to do is explain the product and experience to somebody and then motivate them to sign up for free and start using it. They have to poke around and start using it."

"Craig is a proven Web marketer whose great insight and creativity will be key to taking Mochila to the next level," said CEO Keith McAllister, in a statement.

Mochila recently introduced its AdMatch Player, which enables consumers to watch videos, view photo slideshows and read articles simultaneously within the player. The content that appears in the player is branded by publisher.