With immediate effect, Charles (CJ) Prober has been named as the new CEO of SMB networking specialist Netgear.

Prober will take over as current CEO and board chair from Patrick C.S. Lo, according to a Wednesday announcement from San Jose, California-based Netgear. Lo is leaving both the Netgear board of directors and his employment there.

The news comes at a time when Netgear is struggling with falling revenue, a net loss, and a plummeting stock price (shares have gone down 30% over the last 12 months). The corporation had net revenue of $197.8 million for the most recent quarter, which concluded on October 1, 2023, a 20.7 percent drop from the same time the previous year. In addition, the business announced a net loss of $84.8 million for the quarter, which is a considerable drop from the $2.8 million in net income it achieved during the same period last year.

Through July 2024, Lo will continue to serve as a strategic advisor to facilitate a leadership transition, according to Netgear.

Prober will also be joining Netgear's board of directors, the firm announced. Prober was unanimously selected by the board. His hiring follows the board's 12-month search for the company's head, which aimed to select a leader with a wealth of experience in consumer electronics, software, and subscription services. According to Netgear, this history will position the company as a leader in the corporate and consumer networking spaces.

With over 20 years of experience in the computer sector, Prober most recently held the position of president at Life360 Inc., a firm that offers location-based services through its family social networking app, such as sharing and notifications. In addition, he served as CEO of Tile, a consumer technology and asset monitoring firm that Life360 bought in 2022, as well as president of GoPro's operations and senior vice president of Electronic Art's digital publishing.