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Comcast announced a plan Wednesday to spin off most of its cable television networks into a separate publicly traded company. The new company will include the USA Network, CNBC, MSNBC, Oxygen, E!, SYFY and the Golf Channel. Comcast will retain key NBCUniversal assets, including the NBC broadcast network, NBC News, NBC Sports, the streaming service Peacock, and the cable channel Bravo. The move comes as the traditional cable television bundle faces stiff economic headwinds, most notably the rise of cord-cutting and the shift to streaming alternatives. Matt Strauss will become chairman of the NBCUniversal Media Group.

Persons: Mike Cavanagh, ” Cavanagh, “, Cavanagh, Mark Lazarus, Anand Kini, Dan Ives, ”, ” Rich Greenfield, ” Greenfield, Cesar Conde, Conde “, ” Donna Langley, Peacock, Matt Strauss, Mark Woodbury Organizations: Comcast, USA Network, CNBC, MSNBC, SYFY, Golf Channel, NBC, NBC News, NBC Sports, Bravo, Wall Street Journal, Wedbush Securities, LightShed Partners, Wednesday, NBCUniversal, Group, Telemundo, NBCUniversal Entertainment, Studios, NBCUniversal Media, Universal, General Electric, Netflix, Amazon Prime Locations: NBCUniversal

Comcast is expected to announce a plan Wednesday to spin off its cable networks into a separate company, two people familiar with the matter told NBC News. Comcast had announced during its quarterly earnings call in October that it was considering spinning off its cable networks. Bravo will remain part of Comcast’s NBCUniversal because its content is heavily featured on Peacock, CNBC reported. Comcast Chairman and CEO Brian Roberts will have a voting position in the new entity, but he won't be on the board of directors, CNBC reported. Executive Vice President Adam Miller will become NBCUniversal’s chief operating officer, CNBC reported.

Persons: Mike Cavanagh, Peacock, Peacock's, Mark Lazarus, Anand Kini, Brian Roberts, Donna Langley, Matt Strauss, Cesar Conde, Adam Miller Organizations: Comcast, NBC News, MSNBC, Syfy, Golf, CNBC, Oxygen, Wall Street Journal, NBC, NBCUniversal, Bravo, Paris, NBCUniversal Entertainment, Studios, NBCUniversal Media Group, Group, Telemundo Locations: USA, NBCUniversal

☆ Comcast to spin off its cable channels, including MSNBC and CNBC, into separate company
▼ + stars: | 2024-11-19 | by ( Brian Stelter | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

New York CNN —Comcast is planning to spin off most of its cable television networks, including MSNBC and CNBC, into a separate publicly traded company, according to executives with knowledge of the plan. The spinoff is expected to be formally announced on Wednesday. The Wall Street Journal, which first reported the impending announcement on Tuesday evening, said the involved channels also include USA, Oxygen, E!, Syfy and Golf Channel. While observers may view the spinoff as an attempt to shed cable channels that are losing value in the streaming age, the channels still contribute strong profits to Comcast’s bottom line. Wall Street analysts are predicting further consolidation of major media companies in the years ahead.

Persons: Mark Lazarus, Mike Cavanaugh, Craig Moffett, MoffettNathanson, ” Organizations: New, New York CNN, Comcast, MSNBC, CNBC, Street, Syfy, Golf, Bravo, NBC, NBC Sports, NBCUniversal Media, Wall Street, NBCUniversal News Locations: New York, USA

☆ NBC ripped up its Olympics playbook for 2024 — so far, the new strategy paid off
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-01 | by ( Lillian Rizzo | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Mike Tirico is seen on the set of NBCUniversal Paris 2024 Olympics coverage on August 04, 2024 in Paris, France. We ripped up the playbook two years ago," said Jenny Storms, chief marketing officer of entertainment and sports at NBCUniversal. The 2021 Tokyo Olympics and 2022 Beijing Olympics drew the lowest-ever audiences for Summer and Winter Games, respectively. But notably the strategy for Peacock during those Games appeared to be the biggest misstep. "We made a claim that Peacock would be the home of the Olympics, and we didn't exactly deliver," said Mark Lazarus, chairman of NBCUniversal Media Group.

Persons: Mike Tirico, Comcast's NBCUniversal, Jenny Storms, Storms, Peacock, Mark Lazarus Organizations: NBCUniversal, Games, NBC, Olympic, U.S, Beijing, Olympic Games, Olympics, NBCUniversal Media Locations: Paris, France, Tokyo, Asia, Beijing

☆ Paris Olympics ratings soar 82% over Tokyo Games, delivering big boost to NBC’s Peacock streamer
▼ + stars: | 2024-08-13 | by ( Liam Reilly | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

The 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris drew a combined average of 30.6 million viewers across NBCU’s constellation of platforms, marking an 82% jump in viewership compared to the Tokyo Games and making the Games the most-streamed Olympics of all time. The network’s Spanish-language broadcast on Telemundo also saw a 26% jump over the same period during the Tokyo Games three years ago. “The Olympics reestablished its unique power to reassemble the American media audience,” said Gary Zenkel, the NBC Olympics president. “NBC Nightly News” anchored by Lester Holt averaged 7.6 million viewers during the two-week period, and the “Today” show averaged 3.1 million viewers, the network said. Last month, Comcast reported the streamer had lost 500,000 subscribers in the second quarter, falling to 33 million total, well below Netflix’s 277 million subscribers and Disney’s 153.6 million.

Persons: ”, Peacock, Gary Zenkel, “, NBCU, Al Michael’s, NBCUniversal, Mark Lazarus, Lester Holt Organizations: New, New York CNN, Comcast, Tokyo Games, Telemundo, Olympics, NBC, America, USA, US, France, Netflix, Amazon Prime, Paris Games, Tokyo, Games, Warner Bros, NBA, Paris Olympics, NBCUniversal Media, “ Parks, Studios Locations: New York, Paris, “ Paris

☆ 2024 Paris Olympics viewer’s guide: NBC’s plans, Snoop Dogg, and the big ratings question
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-24 | by ( Richard Deitsch | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +18 min

Follow our Olympics coverage in the lead-up to the Paris Games. The Paris Games will have more programming hours on the NBC broadcast network than any previous Olympics. NBC is upping its celebrity presence for its Olympic coverage in Paris, headlined by Snoop Dogg. “Research shows that it is a challenge to keep viewers after 10 p.m. ET,” NBC Olympics producer Rob Hyland said. NBCUniversal owns the U.S. media rights to the Olympic Games through 2032, so Paris (2024), Milan-Cortina (2026), Los Angeles (2028) and Brisbane (2032).

Persons: Peacock, Molly Solomon, NBC’s, “, ” Solomon, Solomon, Snoop, Snoop Dogg, Christian Petersen, Kelly Clarkson, Peyton Manning, Mike Tirico, Alex Cooper, Leslie Jones, Kevin Hart, Kenan Thompson, Colin Jost, Cooper, Simone Biles, Manning, Ryan Crouser, Jones, Katie Ledecky, Sha’Carri Richardson, Lily Collins, Anna Hall, Ledecky, LeBron James, Sydney McLaughlin, Kelly Campbell, Peacock’s, Scott Hanson, Andrew Siciliano, Jac Collinsworth, Matt Iseman, Akbar Gbajabiamila, ”, Al Michaels, Mark Lazarus, Sanya Richards, Ross, Rowdy Gaines, Tim Daggett, Laurie Hernandez, Samantha Peszek, Misty, Julie Foudy, Dwyane Wade, LaChina Robinson, Michael Phelps, Dan Hicks, Gaines, Maddie Meyer, they’ll, Rob Hyland, Andres Cantor, Rebecca Lowe, Craig Melvin, Ahmed Fareed, Damon Hack, Maria Taylor, Cara Banks, Laura Britt, Trenni Casey, Lindsay Czarniak, Carolyn Manno, Kathryn Tappen, John Roethlisberger, “ John, He’s, …, breaststroker Lilly King wagged, Ryan Murphy, Sunny Choi, Victor Montalvo, Joe Gesue, Ron Vaccaro, NBCU, it’s, NBCUniversal, Rick Cordella, Dan Goldfarb, Stuart Franklin Organizations: Paris, NBC, Paris Games, U.S, Tokyo Olympics, Olympics, NBC Olympics, NBC’s, Getty, NBC Sports, Tokyo Games, Beijing, Games, USA, CNBC, Golf Channel, Telemundo, Universo, NBCOlympics.com, “, ”, NFL, NBCUniversal Media, Paris La Défense, Research, Olympic, Grand Palais, Concorde, NBC Sports ’, Olympic Games, Cortina Locations: Paris, Beijing, Pyeongchang, South Korea, Central, Pacific, U.S, Paris ”, Teahupo’o, Tahiti, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, China, Rio, Tokyo, Peacock, United States, Versailles, Grand, London, Russian, Norway, South Carolina, Milan, Los Angeles, Brisbane, French

☆ The cost of sports content is soaring — and it could mean big cuts in Hollywood budgets
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-18 | by ( Lucia Moses | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

Read previewSports has increasingly become the star of the show for big TV companies, and its ascent is sending a shiver down Hollywood's spine. AdvertisementSports media rights have never been more expensive, but media companies keep paying up. The number of TV shows across the industry has been declining since the 2022 end of the Peak TV era. Media companies have been aggressively pursuing other secondary sports to maintain their value to distributors and advertisers, as Warner Bros. AdvertisementRelationships with the top people in sports will likely be a bigger factor in leadership at media companies moving forward.

Persons: —, Doug Shapiro, Shapiro, Seth Meyers, Spencer Wang, David Levy, — it's, Levy, it's, Jonathan Miller, WBD, Michael Kassan, Mark Lazarus, Media Group's, John Kosner, Ed Desser, Sports doesn't, David Zaslav, Alex Iosilevich Organizations: Service, NBA, Business, Turner Broadcasting, Apple, Google, Street Journal, NBC, ESPN, Amazon, Warner Bros, NFL, Comcast, Netflix, Nielsen, Turner Networks, Horizon, Entertainment, Marvel, Star, Integrated Media Co, Hollywood, Media, Warner Bros . Discovery, Sports, Cannes Lions, Turner, TNT, TBS, Premier League, WWE

☆ Hollywood is facing a dire threat: sports
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-18 | by ( Lucia Moses | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

AdvertisementSports media rights have never been more expensive, but media companies keep paying up. The number of TV shows across the industry has been declining since the 2022 end of the Peak TV era. Media companies have been aggressively pursuing other secondary sports to maintain their value to distributors and advertisers, as Warner Bros. All this has dire implications for entertainment budgets, which media companies have already been trimming after overspending to build streaming businesses. AdvertisementRelationships with the top people in sports will likely be a bigger factor in leadership at media companies moving forward.

☆ Comcast president Cavanagh shakes up NBCUniversal leadership
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Cavanagh, who has been running NBCUniversal since April, said he would continue to lead the division as president of Comcast and not name a new CEO. In his first major action since taking the helm of the unit, Cavanagh also named Mark Lazarus as chairman of NBCUniversal Media Group while Cesar Conde will expand his role as head of the news division to oversee NBCUniversal Local and Telemundo Enterprises Group. Pearlena Igbokwe will continue to lead the four TV studios under the Universal Studio Group umbrella. Cavanagh took charge after Jeff Shell left following the acknowledgment of an inappropriate relationship with a woman in the company. Before his role as president, Cavanagh had served as the finance chief.

Persons: Mike Cavanagh, Donna Langley, Cavanagh, Mark Lazarus, Cesar Conde, Pearlena Igbokwe, Jeff Shell, Akash Sriram, Tanya Jain, Dawn Chmielewski, Sriraj Organizations: NBCUniversal, Group, Reuters, Comcast, NBCUniversal Media, NBCUniversal Local, Telemundo Enterprises Group, Universal Studio Group, Thomson Locations: Bengaluru, Dawn, Los Angeles

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