Music service Pandora names Dish streaming exec Lynch as CEO

Music service Pandora named a new CEO on Monday as it wrestles with competition from Spotify and other newer streaming apps.

Roger Lynch, the head of Dish's streaming video service, will take over the helm of the Oakland, California, company Sept. 18.

Pandora said Lynch is the right leader because he has worked with media companies on new distribution models. He is the founding CEO of Dish's Sling TV, which was launched in 2015 as one of the first apps to bundle live TV for the internet.

Pandora Media Inc. was founded 17 years ago and has primarily been a free internet radio service making money from ads. But its user base has stagnated and its financial losses deepened as new competitors have gained steam.

It has launched new subscription products over the past year, including one that copies Spotify, Apple Music and other apps by letting users pick the songs they want to listen to.

Pandora co-founder Tim Westergren left the company in late June after a 15-month stint as CEO. He departed a few weeks after satellite radio company Sirius XM bought a 19 percent stake in a strategic investment, gaining three board seats.

Pandora also said Monday that it is adding to its board Michael Lynton, the chairman of Snapchat's owner Snap Inc. and former head of film studio Sony Pictures.

Pandora's shares added 35 cents, or 4.3 percent, to $8.42 in after-hours trading. The stock had dropped 38 percent this year through the close of Monday's regular session.