Oxygen Media

Oxygen Media was formed in 1998 by former Nickelodeon president Geraldine Laybourne, Oprah Winfrey, and producers Marcy Carsey, Tom Werner and Caryn Mandabach to build a cable network and websites aimed at women. Its network launched on February 2, 2000 in about 10 million homes, run from downtown Manhattan with nearly 600 employees at launch.^{Source [1]Source [5]Source [7]}

The company drew more than $400 million in programming funds from investors including Paul Allen, Bernard Arnault and America Online. By 2007 the network was available in about 74 million homes, and NBC Universal agreed that October to buy the company for about $925 million.^{Source [5]Source [4]}

Under NBCUniversal, Oxygen rebranded as a true crime network in 2017. When Comcast completed its spin-off of Versant Media Group in January 2026, Oxygen became part of Versant's portfolio alongside networks such as USA Network, CNBC and E!.^{Source [8]Source [6]Source [9]}

Founded in 1998 by Geraldine Laybourne, Oprah Winfrey and Carsey-Werner-Mandabach producers Marcy Carsey, Tom Werner and Caryn Mandabach, it launched the Oxygen cable network on February 2, 2000. NBC Universal announced on October 9, 2007 that it would buy the company for about $925 million, and the sale closed on November 20, 2007. Oxygen now operates as a network of Versant, the cable network company spun off from Comcast's NBCUniversal.^{Source [1]Source [3]Source [7]Source [5]Source [4]Source [10]Source [9]Source [6]}