EarthLink CEO Dies of Cancer at 49

EarthLink said Wednesday that its CEO had passed away a day previous, succumbing to complications from cancer. Garry Betty had stepped down in late November to take a leave of absence from the company.

Betty first joined EarthLink in 1996, after a stint as CEO of Digital Communications Associates. At the time, he was the youngest CEO ever of a publicly traded company on the New York Stock Exchange.

Some could say the 1979 graduate of the Georgia Institute of Technology led an accelerated life: Betty has received many honors on his way to becoming CEO of one of the nation's largest ISPs.

His school honored him with two awards: Young Alumnus of the Year in 1993, and then induction into the Hall of Fame in 2005. The Los Angeles Chamber of Commerce awarded him the Technology Leadership Award in 2001. In 2004 the Atlanta Business Chronicle named him one of the most Infuential Atlantans.

"Garry was instrumental in building EarthLink into the company it is today," EarthLink Board Chairman Robert Kavner said. "He leaves behind a tremendous record of achievement and an accomplished management team committed to pursuing his strategic vision."

Betty was also largely responsible for the company's move into municipal Wi-Fi. He saw the effort as crucial to keep the company relevant in the ISP business, as regulatory concerns made it harder for EarthLink to compete in the broadband business.

EarthLink executive vice president Mike Lunsford will remain as interim CEO while the search for a successor continues. An open forum has been set up on the EarthLink Web site to allow those to pay their respects, the company said in a statement.