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How NBCU watched a $12 billion business turn to mush in just six years
Yes, (Bonnie) Hammer time is truly over, as Comcast cuts loose the vaunted cable homes of 'Suits,' 'Monk' and Rachel Maddow. We also look at The Trade Desk's (now officially announced) new TVOS platform, and DirecTV's plans after breaking up with Dish
Daniel Frankel
November 25, 2024
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Attorney Harvey Specter, played by actor Gabriel Macht on the USA Network hit series ‘Suits’ from 2011-2019, would agree that it’s time for NBCU to cut its declining cable networks loose.
Next Text: Our weekly back-and-forth asks, is Comcast more concerned about DJT than it is the DOJ?
DANIEL FRANKEL: Thanks for letting me in at Westside Digital Mix the other night, David. Renting out Neuehouse Venice Beach, in the land of $20 parking, and plying everyone with free wine, beer and pita, couldn’t have been cheap. Good thing your business is start-up digital publishing. As for this week’s big story, NBCU will package USA Network, CNBC, MSNBC, Oxygen, E!, Syfy and the Golf Channel with Fandango and Rotten Tomatoes into a big, sweet bundle o’ obsolescence not-so-charmingly named “SpinCo,” at least for now. NBCU Media Group Chairman Mark Lazarus will serve as CEO. Certainly, the economics justify this move, and the equity analysts like it. The home of not-quite-iconic-but-infinitely-re-watchable shows including Monk and another USA Network (and later, Netflix) stalwart Suits, NBCU’s cable network sector peaked as recently as 2018, when it grew revenue by 12.2% to $11.773 billion. But it’s been all downhill from there, with the group generating just $7 billion in the 12 months ending Sept. 30. And while the NBC broadcast network shares a lot of its shows with Peacock, only 2% of Peacock movies and shows come from NBCU cable networks.
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