John C. Malone
Encyclopedia
John C. Malone is an American businessman and philanthropist. He served as chief executive officer of cable and media giant, Tele-Communications Inc.
(TCI), for twenty-four years from 1973–1996. Malone is now chairman of Liberty Media
and CEO
of Discovery Holding Company
. He was the interim CEO of Liberty Media until succeeded by former Oracle
CFO Greg Maffei. As of February 1, 2011, Malone surpassed Ted Turner
as the largest individual private landowner in the United States, owning 2100000 acres (8,498.4 km²) of land.
. His father was Daniel L. Malone, an engineer.
In 1959, Malone graduated from Hopkins School
in New Haven, Connecticut
. In 1963, he graduated from Yale University
with a B.A.
in Electrical Engineering
and Economics
, where he was a Phi Beta Kappa and National Merit scholar. In 1964, Malone graduated from Johns Hopkins University
with a M.S.
in Industrial Management, and in 1967, graduated from Johns Hopkins with a Ph.D.
in Operations Research
.
, working in economic planning and research and development
. In 1968, he joined McKinsey & Company
, and in 1970, became Group Vice President at General Instrument Corporation (GI). He was later named President of Jerrold Electronics
, a GI subsidiary.
For twenty-four years, from 1973 to 1996, Malone served as President and CEO of Tele-Communications Inc.
(TCI).
Malone serves on the Boards of Directors for the Bank of New York
, the Cato Institute
, Expedia.com and the Colorado
chapter of The Nature Conservancy
. Additionally, Malone is Chairman Emeritus of the Board for Cable Television Laboratories, Inc. and Chairman of Liberty Global, Inc., and the DirecTV Group. He served as Director of the National Cable & Telecommunications Association
(NCTA) from 1974 to 1977 and again from 1980 to 1993. During the 1977-1978 term, Malone was the NCTA's Treasurer.
In May 2011, Malone began an effort to acquire the bookstore chain Barnes & Noble
, also notable for its eReader, the Nook
.
. However, in business dealings he has been dubbed "Darth Vader", a nickname allegedly given to him by Al Gore
when Malone was the head of TCI, where he demanded equity positions in cable programming services in return for carriage, and attempted to defeat the must-carry
rules which protected broadcasters, a battle which the cable industry eventually lost in 1997 in the U.S. Supreme Court. In 1994, Wired
portrayed Malone on their cover as "Mad Max" from The Road Warrior, with an interview describing his battles with the FCC.
's largest gift ever of $30 million for a new building on Homewood Campus
. The building will be named Malone Hall. In the same year, he gave the Yale School of Engineering & Applied Science
's largest gift ever of $50 million. Malone has also given $60 million to Hopkins School
to fund the construction of two new buildings, Malone Science Center, named for his father, as well as Heath Commons, named after his favorite Hopkins teacher.
, Waynflete School
, and thirty-six others as of 2011.
Tele-Communications Inc.
Tele-Communications, Inc. or TCI was a cable television provider in the United States, for much of its history controlled by Bob Magness and John Malone....
(TCI), for twenty-four years from 1973–1996. Malone is now chairman of Liberty Media
Liberty Media
Liberty Media Corporation is an American media conglomerate and the control is exercised by company Chairman John C. Malone, who owns a majority of the voting shares....
and CEO
Chief executive officer
A chief executive officer , managing director , Executive Director for non-profit organizations, or chief executive is the highest-ranking corporate officer or administrator in charge of total management of an organization...
of Discovery Holding Company
Discovery Holding Company
Discovery Holding Company was a U.S. company headquartered in Meridian, Colorado. The postal designation of nearby Englewood was commonly listed as the company's location in corporate filings and news accounts....
. He was the interim CEO of Liberty Media until succeeded by former Oracle
Oracle Corporation
Oracle Corporation is an American multinational computer technology corporation that specializes in developing and marketing hardware systems and enterprise software products – particularly database management systems...
CFO Greg Maffei. As of February 1, 2011, Malone surpassed Ted Turner
Ted Turner
Robert Edward "Ted" Turner III is an American media mogul and philanthropist. As a businessman, he is known as founder of the cable news network CNN, the first dedicated 24-hour cable news channel. In addition, he founded WTBS, which pioneered the superstation concept in cable television...
as the largest individual private landowner in the United States, owning 2100000 acres (8,498.4 km²) of land.
Early life
Malone was born in Milford, ConnecticutMilford, Connecticut
Milford is a coastal city in southwestern New Haven County, Connecticut, United States, located between Bridgeport and New Haven. The population was 52,759 at the 2010 census...
. His father was Daniel L. Malone, an engineer.
In 1959, Malone graduated from Hopkins School
Hopkins School
The Hopkins School is a private, college-preparatory, coeducational day school, located in New Haven, Connecticut....
in New Haven, Connecticut
Connecticut
Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...
. In 1963, he graduated from Yale University
Yale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
with a B.A.
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
in Electrical Engineering
Electrical engineering
Electrical engineering is a field of engineering that generally deals with the study and application of electricity, electronics and electromagnetism. The field first became an identifiable occupation in the late nineteenth century after commercialization of the electric telegraph and electrical...
and Economics
Economics
Economics is the social science that analyzes the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services. The term economics comes from the Ancient Greek from + , hence "rules of the house"...
, where he was a Phi Beta Kappa and National Merit scholar. In 1964, Malone graduated from Johns Hopkins University
Johns Hopkins University
The Johns Hopkins University, commonly referred to as Johns Hopkins, JHU, or simply Hopkins, is a private research university based in Baltimore, Maryland, United States...
with a M.S.
Master of Science
A Master of Science is a postgraduate academic master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is typically studied for in the sciences including the social sciences.-Brazil, Argentina and Uruguay:...
in Industrial Management, and in 1967, graduated from Johns Hopkins with a Ph.D.
Ph.D.
A Ph.D. is a Doctor of Philosophy, an academic degree.Ph.D. may also refer to:* Ph.D. , a 1980s British group*Piled Higher and Deeper, a web comic strip*PhD: Phantasy Degree, a Korean comic series* PhD Docbook renderer, an XML renderer...
in Operations Research
Operations research
Operations research is an interdisciplinary mathematical science that focuses on the effective use of technology by organizations...
.
Career
In 1963, Malone began his business career at Bell Telephone Laboratories of AT&TAT&T
AT&T Inc. is an American multinational telecommunications corporation headquartered in Whitacre Tower, Dallas, Texas, United States. It is the largest provider of mobile telephony and fixed telephony in the United States, and is also a provider of broadband and subscription television services...
, working in economic planning and research and development
Research and development
The phrase research and development , according to the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, refers to "creative work undertaken on a systematic basis in order to increase the stock of knowledge, including knowledge of man, culture and society, and the use of this stock of...
. In 1968, he joined McKinsey & Company
McKinsey & Company
McKinsey & Company, Inc. is a global management consulting firm that focuses on solving issues of concern to senior management. McKinsey serves as an adviser to many businesses, governments, and institutions...
, and in 1970, became Group Vice President at General Instrument Corporation (GI). He was later named President of Jerrold Electronics
Jerrold Electronics
Jerrold Electronics was a provider of cable television equipment, including subscriber converter boxes, distribution network equipment , and headend equipment in the United States.-History:...
, a GI subsidiary.
For twenty-four years, from 1973 to 1996, Malone served as President and CEO of Tele-Communications Inc.
Tele-Communications Inc.
Tele-Communications, Inc. or TCI was a cable television provider in the United States, for much of its history controlled by Bob Magness and John Malone....
(TCI).
Malone serves on the Boards of Directors for the Bank of New York
Bank of New York
The Bank of New York was a global financial services company established in 1784 by the American Founding Father Alexander Hamilton. It existed until its merger with the Mellon Financial Corporation on July 2, 2007...
, the Cato Institute
Cato Institute
The Cato Institute is a libertarian think tank headquartered in Washington, D.C. It was founded in 1977 by Edward H. Crane, who remains president and CEO, and Charles Koch, chairman of the board and chief executive officer of the conglomerate Koch Industries, Inc., the largest privately held...
, Expedia.com and the Colorado
Colorado
Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...
chapter of The Nature Conservancy
The Nature Conservancy
The Nature Conservancy is a US charitable environmental organization that works to preserve the plants, animals, and natural communities that represent the diversity of life on Earth by protecting the lands and waters they need to survive....
. Additionally, Malone is Chairman Emeritus of the Board for Cable Television Laboratories, Inc. and Chairman of Liberty Global, Inc., and the DirecTV Group. He served as Director of the National Cable & Telecommunications Association
National Cable & Telecommunications Association
The National Cable & Telecommunications Association is the principal trade association for the U.S. cable TV industry, representing cable operators serving more than 90 percent of the nation’s cable households and more than 200 cable program networks, as well as equipment suppliers and providers...
(NCTA) from 1974 to 1977 and again from 1980 to 1993. During the 1977-1978 term, Malone was the NCTA's Treasurer.
In May 2011, Malone began an effort to acquire the bookstore chain Barnes & Noble
Barnes & Noble
Barnes & Noble, Inc. is the largest book retailer in the United States, operating mainly through its Barnes & Noble Booksellers chain of bookstores headquartered at 122 Fifth Avenue in the Flatiron District in Manhattan in New York City. Barnes & Noble also operated the chain of small B. Dalton...
, also notable for its eReader, the Nook
Nook
Nook may refer to a small corner formed by two walls.Nook may also refer to:*A slang name for a person reading; also known as a "book nook"*"Nook", a science-fiction TV series Lexx episode...
.
Personal life
Malone reportedly shuns the limelight and glamorous lifestyle and takes his family vacations alongside long time friend Gary Biskup, in a recreational vehicleRecreational vehicle
Recreational vehicle or RV is, in North America, the usual term for a Motor vehicle or trailer equipped with living space and amenities found in a home.-Features:...
. However, in business dealings he has been dubbed "Darth Vader", a nickname allegedly given to him by Al Gore
Al Gore
Albert Arnold "Al" Gore, Jr. served as the 45th Vice President of the United States , under President Bill Clinton. He was the Democratic Party's nominee for President in the 2000 U.S. presidential election....
when Malone was the head of TCI, where he demanded equity positions in cable programming services in return for carriage, and attempted to defeat the must-carry
Must-carry
In cable television, governments apply a must-carry regulation stating that locally-licensed television stations must be carried on a cable provider's system.- Canada :...
rules which protected broadcasters, a battle which the cable industry eventually lost in 1997 in the U.S. Supreme Court. In 1994, Wired
Wired (magazine)
Wired is a full-color monthly American magazine and on-line periodical, published since January 1993, that reports on how new and developing technology affects culture, the economy, and politics...
portrayed Malone on their cover as "Mad Max" from The Road Warrior, with an interview describing his battles with the FCC.
Philanthropy
In 2000, Malone gave $24 million for the construction of Yale's Daniel L. Malone Engineering Center, named in honor of his father. In 2011, Malone gave the John Hopkins Whiting School of EngineeringWhiting School of Engineering
The G.W.C. Whiting School of Engineering, is a division of the Johns Hopkins University located in the university's Homewood campus in Baltimore, Maryland, United States...
's largest gift ever of $30 million for a new building on Homewood Campus
Homewood Campus of Johns Hopkins University
The Homewood campus is the main academic and administrative center of the Johns Hopkins University. It is located at 3400 North Charles Street in Baltimore, Maryland. Although Hopkins has several campuses, the Homewood campus and medical campus are the most important...
. The building will be named Malone Hall. In the same year, he gave the Yale School of Engineering & Applied Science
Yale School of Engineering & Applied Science
The Yale School of Engineering & Applied Science offers undergraduate and graduate classes and degrees in electrical engineering, chemical engineering, environmental engineering, biomedical engineering, and mechanical engineering and materials science. There are strong research programs in...
's largest gift ever of $50 million. Malone has also given $60 million to Hopkins School
Hopkins School
The Hopkins School is a private, college-preparatory, coeducational day school, located in New Haven, Connecticut....
to fund the construction of two new buildings, Malone Science Center, named for his father, as well as Heath Commons, named after his favorite Hopkins teacher.
Malone Scholars Program
In 1997, he established the Malone Family Foundation, which operates the Malone Scholars Program that provides scholarship endowments to select private schools throughout the United States after a rigorous research process of top schools, including Hopkins SchoolHopkins School
The Hopkins School is a private, college-preparatory, coeducational day school, located in New Haven, Connecticut....
, Waynflete School
Waynflete School
Waynflete School is a private, coeducational, college preparatory day school for early childhood education to twelfth grade, in Portland, Maine. Established in 1898, it is one of three independent private schools in the greater Portland area....
, and thirty-six others as of 2011.