Digital Family Outstanding Achievement Award

The Digital Family Outstanding Achievement Award is bestowed annually upon a person whose leadership, technical innovation, business acumen and community involvement have made a significant impact on Southern California's digital media community. Selected by members of the DFR community, the Outstanding Achievement Award recognizes those exceptional individuals whose achievements have impacted our local economy, advanced our community and inspired our collective vision for what is possible in the greater technology and business communities.

Scott Painter is passionate about cars, direct-to-consumer businesses and technology - and his expertise lies where those three converge. He's drawn to big, game-changing ideas that solve big problems or make an experience better. He has raised hundreds of millions in venture capital for dozens of companies over the past 15 years, pushing changes in auto retailing that bring new-car pricing into the open - and enable the industry to finally function as a free market.

Painter is founder and CEO of Zag, a technology and services company that has created a better way to buy a car. Zag operates a robust auto shopping, research and pricing technology platform that saves buyers money by concentrating group buying power, while providing a better car buying experience by connecting buyers with select dealers that provide great upfront pricing and a no-hassle delivery process.

In 2008, Painter took the next step toward his goal of total pricing transparency by announcing TrueCar, which shows car buyers and dealers what people actually paid for every make, model and trim level of every car in every market - so they can know exactly what a good price or a great price is. And what's overpriced.

Painter is co-founder of Pricelock, an innovative company that is providing protection from rising gas prices. In spring/summer '08, Pricelock partnered with Chrysler to offer a $2.99 gas guarantee incentive program for Chrysler customers. He also is co-founder and a board member of BrightHouse, Inc., a Southern California-based incubator that discovers and methodically develops big ideas into market-changing companies.

In 1998, Painter founded CarsDirect.com, leading to the first generation of online car sites, and propelled the world's major automotive manufacturers and their franchised dealers to embrace the Internet. Under Painter's leadership, CarsDirect.com secured more than $350 million in funding and played a principal role in the transformation of the automotive retail industry into one driven by consumer expectations, customer service and trust.

Earlier in his career, Painter leveraged his expertise in direct response marketing and advertising with several well-known successes, including 1-800-DENTISTTM and 1-800-CAR-SEARCHTM. Painter also was founder and CEO of INFOAccessTM, Inc., an electronic classified service. Painter attended the West Point United States Military Academy, where he studied political science and systems engineering. Painter also studied economics at the University of California at Berkeley.