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John Malone, the executive and investor who had a significant hand in shaping cable TV, media and broadband sectors, is stepping down as chairman of his Liberty Media and Liberty Global holding companies.
Effective Jan. 1, 2026, Malone will leave the board of directors of Liberty Media and transition to the role of chairman emeritus. At that time, current vice chairman Robert R. Bennett will assume the role of chairman of the board.
Also Jan. 1, Malone will leave the board of Liberty Global, a European and U.K. telecom operator, and relinquish the chairman role, transitioning to chairman emeritus. Mike Fries, Liberty Global's CEO and Vice Chairman, will succeed Malone as chairman.
Liberty Media owns the Formula One Group (which includes Liberty Media's subsidiaries Formula 1, MotoGP, Quint and other minority investments) and its Liberty Live Group includes Liberty Media's interest in Live Nation Entertainment.
From 1996 to March 1999, Malone was chairman and CEO of TCI until it was sold to AT&T. Before that he was president and CEO of TCI from 1973 to 1996. Malone is chair emeritus of Warner Bros. Discovery, a director emeritus of Liberty Latin America and chairman emeritus of the board for CableLabs.
"Founding Liberty Media and serving as its Chairman has been among the most rewarding experiences of my professional life," Malone said in a statement. "With the successful simplification of our portfolio in recent years and our operating businesses in positions of strength, I believe it is an appropriate time to step back from certain of my obligations, and I am very pleased to have Dob Bennett, my partner and colleague of 35 years, stepping into the Chairman role. Dob has been involved in all key decisions throughout Liberty Media's history, and I am confident that Liberty is well-positioned for the future. I look forward to remaining actively engaged as a large Liberty shareholder and a strategic advisor to our management and Board."
"I want to thank John for more than three decades of partnership and mentorship. His legacy as a visionary business leader is without parallel and I am deeply grateful for his confidence. I speak for the entire Board in thanking John for his extraordinary leadership as our Chairman and for his continuing engagement as Chairman Emeritus," Bennett said in a statement.
As of Aug. 31, Malone beneficially owned approximately 241,000 of Series A Formula One common stock, 2.364 million shares of Series B Formula One common stock and 2.515 million shares of Series C Formula One common stock, representing approximately 49.5% of the voting power of the Formula One common stock, as well as approximately 251 thousand shares of Series A Liberty Live common stock, 2.465 million shares of Series B Liberty Live common stock and 4.314 million shares of Series C Liberty Live common stock, representing approximately 48.9% of the voting power of the Liberty Live common stock.