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Tuesday, April 4, 2017

Pluto TV Appoints Robert Magdlen as Chief Programming Officer

LOS ANGELES – Pluto TV, the leading free over-the-top (OTT) television service in America, today announced the appointment of accomplished entertainment veteran Robert Magdlen to the new position of Chief Programming Officer. Effective immediately, he will be responsible for programming and channel development in support of Pluto TV’s strategic priorities, which include becoming the global free destination for mainstream, interest-based, and unique TV entertainment. Magdlen will be based out of the Company’s headquarters in Los Angeles and will report directly to Pluto TV co-founder and CEO, Tom Ryan.

“Having built successful TV networks, Robert is the perfect person to lead our programming initiatives,” said Tom Ryan, CEO of Pluto TV. “Pluto TV is about connecting viewers with both familiar and unexpected content and I cannot wait for our viewers to see what he and the team have in store for them.”

In addition to its premium news, TV shows, movies, sports, live events, cartoons and trending digital series, Pluto TV continues to introduce a variety of interest-based channels to its Citizens. Magdlen is tasked with heightening the platform’s programming strategy across all Pluto TV services, including curated channels like “The Feed,” “Hive,” “What?!,” “Funny AF,” “Man Up,” and “Internet Gold,” as well as identifying new programming opportunities.

“When you look at where television is headed, Pluto TV is the most convincing vision for the future of TV,” said Magdlen. “Everyone at Pluto TV is incredibly determined to change TV and I’m very excited to lead a team at the intersection of technology and entertainment.”

Magdlen previously served as senior vice president of program strategy and acquisitions at E! where he led a team supporting multi-platform scheduling, marketing, development, public relations, production management, ad sales, distribution, audience research, network operations, traffic and international. He was part of the executive team that launched and grew the Kardashians into the biggest name in reality TV and Chelsea Handler into a top female comic.

During his tenure, Magdlen managed E!’s annual programming budget and pro forma analysis of all original and acquired content. He oversaw programming strategies behind the successful launches of E!’s forays into scripted with The Royals; reality TV hit series including Keeping Up with the Kardashians, Total Divas, and Botched; as well as topical series like Chelsea Lately, The Soup and Fashion Police. Magdlen also served as a network executive on many hit original series, such as The E! True Hollywood Story, Fashion Police and The Soup. Moreover, he was the executive in charge of production for E! News Specials.

In addition to acquiring iconic shows, such as Sex & The City and Saved By The Bell for E!, Magdlen built up the highly successful Movies We Love franchise that included pop culture favorites Knocked Up, Bridesmaids, He’s Just Not That Into You, I Love You Man and Friends With Benefits. He also purchased movies on behalf of other Comcast cable and NBCU cable channels, including USA, Syfy, Bravo, Oxygen, Esquire and TV One.

Prior to E!, Magdlen worked in production for TNT in Los Angeles after starting his entertainment career at Turner Entertainment’s Atlanta headquarters working with Cartoon Network, CNN, TBS, TNT, TCM and Turner Sports.

Pluto TV represents a homecoming for Magdlen as he was a coder for a boutique artificial intelligence lab prior to joining the entertainment community. Magdlen received an MBA from the UCLA Anderson School of Management and a Bachelor of Science degree from Northwestern University.

About Pluto TV:

Pluto TV, the leading free OTT television service in America, carries and programs more than 100 channels in partnership with major TV networks, movie studios, publishers and digital media companies. Millions of viewers tune in each month to watch premium news, TV shows, movies, sports, live events, cartoons and trending digital series. Download the Pluto TV app free on mobile, web, and living room devices, including Roku, Apple TV, Android TV, Playstation, Xbox and more.

Pluto TV expanded into the European market with the purchase of Quazer, a newly launched lean back TV service that ranked #1 in the German Apple TV store. Quazer delivers continuously optimized programs for each individual viewer by utilizing machine learning technologies and thereby revolutionizing the way people watch. Founded in 2016, the Berlin-based company offers a unique digital TV-like service with more than 60 smartly curated and never before seen thematic channels.

Headquartered in Los Angeles, with offices in Berlin, New York City, and Silicon Valley, Pluto TV is backed by USVP, ProSiebenSat.1 Media, Scripps Networks Interactive, Sky, Luminari Capital, Chicago Ventures, Terry Semel’s Windsor Media, United Talent Agency and other prominent investors.

Contact + More Info.:

For more information, images, or to contact the Pluto TV PR team, please head over to our press page at http://corporate.pluto.tv/press/.