TPG Growth, whose parent TPG owns a majority stake in CAA, and John Malones Liberty Global have teamed to launch a global television production and distribution studio dubbed Platform One Media. The studio will be majority owned by Evolution Media, TPG Growths investment partnership with CAA and Participant Media, with Liberty Global taking a minority equity stake via Liberty Global Group in its first major foray into TV production and distribution.

Platform One, which has tapped former Gaumont Television CEO Katie OConnell Marsh as CEO, will absorb TPG GrowthsSlingshot Global Media, including its portfolio and development projects.Courtney Conte, who was appointed as new President of Slingshot Global Media in January, will be Chief Operating Officer and President of Platform One. Also coming over from Slingshot is head of Business Affairs Neil Strum. Launched in 2014, Slingshot put a slew of high-profile series in development though none has gone into production.

OConnell Marsh in 2015 was tapped by DreamWorks Animation to run a new live-action TV unit, though the companys plans in the area changed when it was subsequently acquired by NBCUniversal. OConnell Marsh is bringing with her to Platform One Elisa Ellis, who served as the Head of Creative at DreamWorks live-action division and also worked for OConnell Marsh at Gaumont, as well as another Gaumont alum, Erik Pack. Additionally, producer Julia Franz, former head of creative at ABC Studios, has joined the company as a consultant.

TPG Growth has a history of identifying and building companies, such as STX Entertainment, that can redefine their categories, said Bill McGlashan, founder and managing partner of TPG Growth and co-founder and CEO of The Rise Fund. Working with our partners at Evolution Media, we look forward to leveraging our collective experiences and networks in the entertainment space to build this business with Katie and her team.

Added Bruce Mann, Chief Programming Officer at Liberty Global,Platform One Media has the key ingredients Liberty Global values in a strategic asset: great leadership, a clear vision and aligned, well capitalized partners. It also gives us the opportunity to work with world-class talent creating high-quality scripted programming which could potentially feature on Liberty Globals pay-TV platforms in Europe.

The indie TV production companies landscape has been very challenging in the last few years as U.S. TV networks have upped their push for ownership, with Gaumont under OConnell Marsh as one of few success stories.

OConnell Marsh spent five years as CEOatGaumont Television, where she launched and built up the indie studio operation with such series as NBCsHannibal, NetflixsNarcos,Hemlock GroveandF Is For Family. Before that, she served as head of drama for NBC and was a development executive at Imagine TV.

The explosion of original content globally is creating an opportunity fornew, innovative, and diverse ways to engage audiences beyond the series itself, said OConnell Marsh. WithPlatform One Media, and our partners TPG Growth and Liberty Global, we are perfectly positioned to develop and distribute compellingnarratives that are artistic, meaningful and addictive by working closelywith innovative, inspiring talent to bring to life their creative visions.

Here is more info on the other appointments to the Platform One Media executive team:

Link:

TPG Growth & Liberty Global Launch Indie TV Studio Run By Katie O'Connell Marsh, Will Absorb Slingshot - Deadline