Christina M. Calio
Director, Music Relationships and Strategy, Entertainment and Devices Group
Microsoft Corp.

Christina Calio is the director of strategic music relationships and business strategy for the Entertainment and Devices Group at Microsoft. She is responsible fostering productive and constructive relationships with and across the media and entertainment industry and for facilitating the best business opportunities for Microsoft.

Calio has been a key participant in Microsoft’s music initiatives since joining the company in 1999. Most recently, she was the director of content and programming at Zune, responsible for artist and industry relationships, artist development programs, and the sale and promotion of music on the Zune Marketplace.  Prior to that, she was a director of business development for Zune, with an emphasis on licensing music from major and independent record labels leading to the Zune launch in November of 2006 which followed a stint at MSN Music in a similar capacity.  Calio first joined Microsoft as business development manager for the Windows Digital Media division, arriving just as the company launched the Windows Media Player, codec, and DRM technologies.  During those early years, she managed relationships with major record labels and digital services such as Napster and Pressplay, as the industry dipped their collective toe into digital distribution.  This included incorporating industry feedback as Microsoft developed Windows Media technologies required to encourage and build a worldwide media-rich marketplace, and building promotional opportunities on WindowsMedia.com and in the Windows Media Player. 

Calio’s music industry experience runs deep, including more than a decade of first-hand marketing experience at Geffen Records in Los Angeles where she worked on releases from Geffen, Almo, DGC, Dreamworks, and Outpost imprints for a broad range of artists including Nirvana, Guns ‘N’ Roses, Beck, and Aerosmith.  

Calio earned a Bachelor of Arts in political science and international relations, and a minor in German, from the University of Washington. 
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