Former exec Phil Harrison has flown into New York to become the president of Infogrames Entertainment, it emerges this evening, the Sony departee charged with helping reinvigorate publishing label Atari's fortunes.

Harrison will work alongside new CEO David Gardner, himself a former executive of global giant Electronic Arts.

Harrison's arrival at has been speculated for several weeks, but the final details of his appointment have only been thrashed out in recent days, were told.

"This is the perfect time to join Infogrames and help shape the future of Atari - one of the industry's legendary brands. As the game business moves rapidly I believe we have an outstanding opportunity to create amazing network game and community experiences for players the world over," beamed Harrison.

"I am especially excited to be working on this challenge together with David, one of the most respected leaders and successful executives in our industry."

Gardner, meanwhile, was understandably pleased with such a high-profile capture: "I am pleased to welcome Phil to Infogrames. He has an outstanding reputation in the industry, as one of the key leaders behind the success of PlayStation. We have been seeking an opportunity to work together for some time and I am certain he will be able to make a significant contribution to the publishing of the Group.

"Drawing upon Infogrames' strong financial foundation, Phil will have the means to attract new talent, develop studio and online capabilities, and drive forward our publishing activities. I want to work with people that understand fun for consumers and fun in the company culture. We're going to have a lot more of both around here with Phil!"

Gardner will look to online gaming in order to revive Atari's flagging fortunes, the boss revealing earlier today that "it's pretty clear to me that the whole way that people are going to want to buy their games, play their games, interface with their games is network-centric."

Harrison is regarded as the mastermind behind game titles such as and at Sony, Gardner, meanwhile, is eying Infogrames' portfolio for revival hits: "It's not going to be hard to bring well-known properties to market, it's going to be hard to make sure they are relevant and good in today's terms. We're not just going to re-release 1980s classics untouched - that would be a mistake."

We'll keep you posted on these exciting times at Atari / Infogrames.

By Luke Guttridge