Comcast to spin-off NBCUniversal in a separate company

[themidnightlore]

You heard about Versant, now get ready to have NBCUniversal separated from Comcast! Sky Group ends under the separated NBCU, btw.

Comcast to Split Into Two Companies via Spin-Off of NBCUniversal, Including Sky

Mike Cavanagh will serve as the CEO of NBCUniversal, while Comcast’s former CFO Michael Angelakis will become the CEO of Comcast in the separation of its media and technology businesses.

www.hollywoodreporter.com

 

[cartoonnetworkpoke]

It'd be so funny if somehow FOX gets Sky again.

 

[RegularCapital]

It'd be so funny if somehow FOX gets Sky again.

It's all part of a plan to spin Sky off and merge it with the broadcasting side of ITV.

 

[RandomMe]

It'd be so funny if somehow FOX gets Sky again.

Though the new Murdoch FOX Corporation is nowhere near what it was in its imperial phase 20-30 years ago

 

[harry580]

Well this might explain some things.

I'd expect a lot of things to start changing based on this new financial reality.

I'd also expect Netflix to start circling around for a potential merger, maybe even a handoff at the end of the year, I mean, netflix has a big relationship with Dreamworks so why not?

 

[PF9]

This changes everything.

Before this was announced, I had wanted Comcast to buy Universal Music Group and run it as a separate business unit from NBCU. Now the burden of acquiring UMG and reuniting it with its namesake falls on NBCU themselves.

 

[LinusFan303]

This actually is about about two things. One, the cable business drags NBC Universal down, so splitting it up make sense to them. And the cable half can now possibly work to merge with Charter. (That's not a Wish list thing by me, I don't wish for mergers, I wish for break ups). There's been that under current for years that they wanted to buy Charter (they tried to by TWC and failed). It is interesting because of any of the past almost 20 years of mergers (almost 2030 yeah) that the Comcast purchase of NBC wasn't even bad. They strengthened the NBC owned stations after GE screwed things up, they invested in NBC way better than GE, they did a great job probably the only good merger in media ever. Probably because the regulators did their job and put a whole bunch of conditions Comcast had to follow and because it seemed Comcast actually cared about NBC which is a rarity in these purchases.

Well this might explain some things.

I'd expect a lot of things to start changing based on this new financial reality.

I'd also expect Netflix to start circling around for a potential merger, maybe even a handoff at the end of the year, I mean, netflix has a big relationship with Dreamworks so why not?

how about no mergers that'd be great and better

It's all part of a plan to spin Sky off and merge it with the broadcasting side of ITV.

Not a fan of the Brits doing the same bad mergers here is doing.

 

[Elijah Abrams]

This makes me worried that either Sony, David Ellison, Amazon, Disney, or (Eugh) Elon Musk will buy NBCUniversal, even just to dismantle it and sell assets like the parks, even though Brian Roberts denied that. It’s just that random people right now are theorizing.

Comcast Split "Absolutely Not" A Prelude To M&A Spree, Co-CEO Says

Comcast executives sought to downplay the scenario that the media giant will be primed for dealmaking once it splits into two companies next year.

deadline.com

 

[Space Cadet]

Wow, wasn't expecting this news today! It does make the decision to spin off Versant a little bit more puzzling now.

 

[AdrenalineRush1996]

Unsure what to think of these upcoming plans.

On one hand, this does not affect the upcoming plans to acquire ITV's linear TV channels and ITVX but on the other hand, this is the second time this year in which they spun off their subsidiaries, given that their cable TV channels were spun off into Versant back in January.

 

[cartoonnetworkpoke]

So pretty much Amazon, Google, Apple, Open AI, and Netflix will own all media companies by the end of the decade? That's not good.

 

[Mandouga]

So pretty much Amazon, Google, Apple, Open AI, and Netflix will own all media companies by the end of the decade? That's not good.

Let's not jump to conclusions here. I'm personally going to assume that NBC Universal will remain...uh, independent (or something...).

 

[Elijah Abrams]

Let's not jump to conclusions here. I'm personally going to assume that NBC Universal will remain...uh, independent (or something...).

I even found this interesting bit in CNBC's report on the split.

Comcast's NBCUniversal spinoff raises hope for more deals. There may not be good options

Comcast plans to separate its cable and media divisions over the next year. This could set each company up for M&A, but there might not be any good options.

www.cnbc.com

Deal hurdles​

The motivation behind splitting a company apart is often to open up more deal opportunities. Still, it's not clear what deals the newly created company of NBCUniversal and Sky assets could explore without serious regulatory challenges.

For one, housing broadcast network NBC creates various obstacles. The company wouldn't be able to merge with a company that has another national network, effectively taking Disney, the owner of ABC, and CBS owner Paramount Skydance off the table.

Even eliminating the broadcasters from the equation, a deal with Paramount Skydance — which has been on something of a shopping spree under new CEO David Ellison — would be a stretch following the completion of its deal with WBD.

Fox, the remaining major player in linear TV, has stayed away from traditional media after hiving off its entertainment assets years ago and likely doesn't have the appetite for another deal after its Roku agreement.

With the WBD sale process, Netflix showed it was open to doing deals — for the right assets.

But Netflix's interest in WBD was in its film studio and streaming assets, casting aside WBD's linear networks. Even with major sports properties like the NFL's Sunday Ticket, the NBA and top film content, it's hard to imagine Netflix would make such a shift and get into linear TV via a hypothetical deal with NBCUniversal.

That leaves little else on the table when it comes to media deals, with the largest players all pretty much spoken for. Comcast didn't specify Monday what it expects either company to be valued at post-spin, but between the Universal theme parks business, a substantial, albeit small, streamer and a respected content library, NBCUniversal would likely be too large for a smaller player to swallow.

 

[lowell]

It's important to note some missing things here.

While Comcast is going to pull an AT&T move and dump some of its debt load onto NBCUniversal, Sky's telecom businesses was given to NBCU so it could stay afloat with their revenue streams.

As for Peacock, Comcast still confirms it's about to reach the profitability stage so the questions about its international expansion will certainly be raised again once that official announcement is made.

As for any M&A moves, NBCUniversal has $9B of cash it hasn't tapped yet and that could easily be used to boost up Peacock now with bite-size purchases.

And while people may talk about the linear networks, these bite-size purchases are ultimately about the brands (that could actually grow beyond cable) and the content itself:

"What could NBCUniversal do next? It may seek to buy up smaller assets, like Lionsgate, Starz or AMC Global Media."

Could Comcast and NBCUniversal Do Deals After They Break Up?

Comcast said it plans to spin off its big media division from its core broadband operations. That could lead to some big-ticket deal-making.

www.nytimes.com

As Comcast refocuses itself on the Xfinity bread-and-butter businesses and given Dish is going to file for Ch. 11 soon, I could see Brian Roberts picking up the Dish Wireless business while founder Charlie Ergen inks his Dish Network-DIRECTV deal.

 

[Moe]

It'd be so funny if somehow FOX gets Sky again.

They won't because linear networks aren't future for FOX.

how about no mergers that'd be great and better

Bingo!!!

This makes me worried that either Sony, David Ellison, Amazon, Disney, or (Eugh) Elon Musk will buy NBCUniversal, even just to dismantle it and sell assets like the parks, even though Brian Roberts denied that. It’s just that random people right now are theorizing.

Comcast Split "Absolutely Not" A Prelude To M&A Spree, Co-CEO Says

Comcast executives sought to downplay the scenario that the media giant will be primed for dealmaking once it splits into two companies next year.

deadline.com

That is unlikely because M&A is getting more expensive with no good result for both companies.

If PSKY-WBD merger become disastrous so many companies would become to refrain from buying studios.

 

[lowell]

That is unlikely because M&A is getting more expensive with no good result for both companies.

If PSKY-WBD merger become disastrous so many companies would become to refrain from buying studios.

Apparently, NBCUniversal also wants to go into gaming:

"NBCUniversal is eyeing opportunities in digital gaming and new entertainment franchises as the company weighs options for future growth after its planned spinoff from Comcast, according to three people with direct knowledge of the matter.

Comcast’s cable and connectivity business, meanwhile, is ripe for technological investments ‌that could take advantage of the massive surge in data centers and AI, these people said.

Roberts has had a long interest in gaming. His son, Tucker Roberts, runs Comcast’s gaming division and advised his father on expanding into the Korean e-sports market.

Comcast previously explored acquiring Activision and Electronic Arts, as well as taking an equity stake in Epic Games, maker of Fortnite, according to one person with direct knowledge of the talks. The company also ⁠has a partnership with Nintendo for theme park attractions and two animated films, “The Super Mario Bros. Movie” and “The Super Mario Galaxy Movie,” that each grossed more than $1 billion at the global box office."

https://www.reuters.com/world/nbcuniversal-may-enter-video-game-business-after-comcast-split-sources-say-2026-06-29/

That might be hard to do if it's saddled with part of Comcast's $89B debt load.

But Peacock's international expansion definitely needs to be a key priority here because there's no more hiccups tied to Xfinity for Cavanagh to blame on.

Honestly, Skydance's WarnerDiscovery pursuit is just a unique situation that if it gets entirely upended, people will just write it off being an Ellison ego problem because that's ultimately what it is.

 

[Insidus]

You heard about Versant, now get ready to have NBCUniversal separated from Comcast! Sky Group ends under the separated NBCU, btw.

Comcast to Split Into Two Companies via Spin-Off of NBCUniversal, Including Sky

Mike Cavanagh will serve as the CEO of NBCUniversal, while Comcast’s former CFO Michael Angelakis will become the CEO of Comcast in the separation of its media and technology businesses.

www.hollywoodreporter.com

To think even I predicted this would happen then some people said Comcast would never agree to a divorce. I had thought of Canal+ and Sky merging but then Bollore kind of prevents that from being a reality and who knows maybe NBCUniversal is serious about not selling the company. If a sale were to happen it's definitely in parts WTH would want to own a theme park and if it were to be Netflix I feel like this time around they'd ki keep those cable networks.

 

[RandomMe]

So who gets what now?

 

[lowell]

To think even I predicted this would happen then some people said Comcast would never agree to a divorce. I had thought of Canal+ and Sky merging but then Bollore kind of prevents that from being a reality and who knows maybe NBCUniversal is serious about not selling the company. If a sale were to happen it's definitely in parts WTH would want to own a theme park and if it were to be Netflix I feel like this time around they'd ki keep those cable networks.

Honestly, if NBCU manages to boost Peacock and preps it for international expansion, I still wouldn't rule out them exploring a pursuit of Canal+ down the road to expand themselves and Sky's telecom business, once most of the saddled Comcast debt is whittled away.

 

[RegularCapital]

For a brief period in the early 2000's, Canal+ and Universal were used to part of the same company during the Vivendi Universal days, NBCUniversal buying Canal+ would be tough (but possible) due to European Commission competition rules.