Go Daddy announced today that it has added former White House Advisor Andrew Kline as its new Deputy General Counsel for Global Policy. In fact, Go Daddy says he’s joining to help join the company’s “fight to do the right thing.”
That is, at least when it comes to the Internet. Not everyone agrees about the company’s approach to the “right thing” when it comes to elephants, though a recent report indicated that the infamous elephant shooting was actually followed by increased domain registrations for the company.
Kline’s job with Go Daddy includes helping the company expand internationally and strengthening its fight against illegal activities like rogue Internet pharmacies and copyright infringement, the company says.
This is actually somewhat familiar territory for Kline. Under the Obama Administration, he served as the Chief of Staff and Senior Advisor in the Office of U.S. Intellectual Property Rights Enforcement, and was responsible for cracking down on counterfeit pharmaceuticals and copyright and trademark infringement.
“Andrew’s record speaks for itself,” said Go Daddy CEO Bob Parsons. “Like our General Counsel Christine Jones, Andrew is an attorney who knows how to get things done, a leader and a person who works to make a difference … and as fast as the Internet is growing, Go Daddy is going to stay ahead of it!”
“After seeing Go Daddy’s commitment and pledge to ‘do the right thing,’ I was inspired … and knew I could go into the private sector and make a difference,” said Kline. “Go Daddy has demonstrated its commitment to keeping the Internet safe in a way that gets results and I want to be a part of that team.”
Go Daddy serves over 9.4 million customers and manages over 49 million domain names. The company recently sold to a group of private equity firms for $2.25 billion.