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Liberty Media Forms Interactive Venture
Lee Masters to be Appointed as President and CEO, Bruce Ravenel Appointed as Executive Vice President
BUSINESS WIRE
ENGLEWOOD, Colo., Sept. 28 — Liberty Media Corp. (Nasdaq:LBTYA) (Nasdaq:LBTYB) announced today the formation of Liberty Interactive, a new venture created to focus on the development of interactive programming and content for emerging new media platforms.
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Liberty Media Forms Interactive Venture
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Through internal development, acquisitions and partnerships, Liberty Interactive will create compelling content designed to take advantage of the capabilities of advanced set top boxes and other convergence appliances. Liberty will contribute to Liberty Interactive its 86 percent interest in TCI Music (Nasdaq:TUNE/TUNEP) and Liberty's agreement with TCI regarding development of interactive video services. Liberty also will make available appropriate financing and other resources as needed for the new entity. Liberty Interactive will be a wholly owned subsidiary of Liberty Media.
Lee Masters, president and CEO of E! Entertainment Television Inc. will head up the management team of Liberty Interactive as president and CEO beginning on Jan. 1, 1999. Masters will be joined by Bruce Ravenel as executive vice president and chief technology officer. Ravenel will assume his position immediately.
Robert Bennett, president and CEO of Liberty Media, commented, "Liberty Interactive will be a high priority for us as the cable industry prepares to roll out the next generation of set top devices. Lee and Bruce bring tremendous experience, creativity, entrepreneurial spirit and complementary skills to this project.
"Lee took E! from a struggling network nine years ago and transformed it into a leading source of entertainment industry information and a well-recognized television brand that is also a leader in interactive programming. This is an exceptional accomplishment for any network and Lee deserves much of the credit for the tremendous value he has created for his shareholders. Bruce has for several years been responsible for TCI's involvement and investment in emerging interactive technologies. He was instrumental in the creation of @Home and for the design of TCI's advanced set top devices.
"His technical knowledge and entrepreneurial skill will be very valuable to our new enterprise. Under the direction of Lee and Bruce, Liberty Interactive is poised to become a leader in the development of consumer friendly interactive content and a mechanism for long-term value creation for Liberty's stockholders."
In accepting the new position, Masters stated: "I am evangelical in my belief that the single greatest growth opportunity for value creation will be producing programming and content for the convergence of the TV and the Web through the set top box. Liberty Interactive intends to work cooperatively with the cable industry to create content that increases the functionality and appeal of the next generation set top box. And who better to partner with to make that happen than Liberty Media."
Liberty Media is the programming unit of Tele-Communications Inc. Liberty holds numerous investments in globally branded entertainment networks such as Discovery Channel, BET, TLC, FX, USA, QVC, Encore, Starz! and the Fox/Liberty sports networks. Liberty Media Group Series A and B common stock are series of Tele-Communications Inc. common stock and are traded on the National Tier of the Nasdaq Stock Market under the symbols LBTYA and LBTYB, respectively.
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