Early life and career

Fries obtained an Bachelor of Arts from Wesleyan University

Wesleyan University

Wesleyan University is a private liberal arts college founded in 1831 and located in Middletown, Connecticut. According to the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, Wesleyan is the only Baccalaureate College in the nation that emphasizes undergraduate instruction in the arts and...

 and a Master of Business Administration from Columbia Business School

Columbia Business School

Columbia Business School is the business school of Columbia University in Manhattan, New York City. It was established in 1916 to provide business training and professional preparation for undergraduate and graduate Columbia University students...

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In 1990, Fries joined a predecessor company of UnitedGlobalCom. Fries served as COO (2001-04), President (1998-04), and President and CEO of UnitedGlobalCom from 2004 until it merged with Liberty Media International in 2005, forming Liberty Global. Upon the merger, Fries was appointed President and CEO of Liberty Global in June 2005.