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Tag: versant

  • Versant Shares Dip On Day One As Comcast Spinoff Settles Into NYC Headquarters, Looks To Future

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    Shares of newly public Versant Media fell on the first day of trading as an independent public company, closing down 13% at $40.57.

    Executives led by CEO Mark Lazarus were on hand at the Nasdaq market for the debut of the newly standalone entity that houses TV networks and complementary digital businesses, including CNBC, MS NOW formerly MSNBC), USA Network, Golf Channel, Oxygen, E!, SYFY, Fandango, Rotten Tomatoes, GolfNow, GolfPass and SportsEngine. Comcast announced about a year ago plans to separate declining linear cable assets its core broadband business and the rest of NBCUniversal.

    The spinoff delivered Comcast stockholders with 1 share of Versant for every 25 shares of Comcast in hand. A downturn in Versant stock was expected as index funds and other investors primarily interested in holding Comcast cycle out and it could take a few weeks or more for the shareholder base to turn over and the stock to settle.

    At a recent investor day, CEO Mark Lazarus and his team described plans to grow the new company beyond cable. Versant initially expects to generate $6.7 billion in revenue with 62% coming from linear distribution, 23% from advertising, 13% from its digital platforms and 3% from content licensing and other. It also expects $2.3 billion in EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization) and $1.5 billion in free cash flow

    It debuts with $3 billion in gross debt, $750 million in cash on hand and 1.5 billion in total liquidity.

    The spin is being closely watched as a statement on the future of cable, which throws off significant cash but has been in rapid decline as viewers migrate to streaming. Versant is also particularly interesting as a proxy for Discovery Global, another new linear television company Warner Bros. Discovery is planning to cut loose in the third quarter of 2026 as it sells its Warner Bros. studios and streaming assets to Netflix. David Ellison’s Paramount is attempting to derail that deal, announced late last year, and acquire all of WBD.

    A takeover battle between the two bidders has largely come down to Discovery Global, which Par values at about $1 a share but WBD and some Wall Streeters say is worth significantly more.

    Share price is generally calculated using a multiple of projected EBITDA and other metrics which, for Discovery Global, have not yet been nailed down, including the amount of debt that will be layered on the new company.

    Meanwhile, Versant has settled on its new digs and unveiled in late December that it is making the historic New York Times building its permanent home. It had settled temporarily into three floors there but Lazarus told staff in a memo that it is taking another three and renovating all six as well as a lobby and cafeteria at 229 West 43rd Street.

    “After careful consideration and hearing from many of you about how this location makes your commute more manageable, we have decided to remain here. We are excited to become a fixture in this hub of media, entertainment and finance,joining our neighbors – Paramount Global, Snap Inc., TikTok, Roku, Nasdaq, Morgan Stanley and Bank of America,” he wrote.

    “Leaving 30 Rock and settling into this unique space was not always easy, but it has also become a special moment in our company’s history. Now, we look forward to setting down roots and transforming this space into our own permanent VERSANT New York Headquarters together.” 

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    Jillg366

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  • Comcast Extends Mike Cavanagh’s Contract, Grants $35M In Stock Awards As Exec Set To Become Co-CEO

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    Comcast has entered into a new employment agreement with Michael Cavanagh in connection with his upcoming appointment as co-chief executive officer alongside Brian Roberts starting January 2. The contract secures Cavanagh’s employment through January 1, 2029, the company said in an SEC filing.

    Cavanagh will be entitled to an annual base salary of $2.75 million and his annual performance-based cash bonus target will continue to be 300% of his base salary. Cavanagh also received an award of performance-based restricted stock units valued at approximately $35 million.

     The number of shares was determined by using a five-day volume weighted-average price of Class A common stock for the period ending the day before the record date for the planned Versant spin-off, an initiative he spearheaded. The performance award will vest in three years pegged to satisfying some time-based and performance-based conditions.

    The NBCUniversal parent officially spins off Versant Media Media Group into a standalone public company that will begin trading on the Nasdaq Jan. 5 under the stock symbol VSNT. It houses NBCU cable networks (except Bravo) and digital assets like Fandango and Rotten Tomatoes. Comcast announced plans about a year ago to separate out its cable assets from its core broadband business and the rest of NBCU. It set Mark Lazarus as CEO with a new leadership team.

    Not long after Comcast unveiled the move, Warner Bros. Discovery followed with its own plan to split and separate out linear television in a new entity called Discovery Global. WBD this month struck a deal to sell the faster growing Warner Bros. studios and streaming to Netflix, although David Ellison’s Paramount is still in hot pursuit.

    Versant said at its first investor day recently that it expects to generate $6.6 billion in revenue, $2.2 billion in EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization) and $1.4 billion in free cash flow for 2025. It will launch with $3 billion in gross debt, $750 million in cash and $1.5 billion in total liquidity. While cable throws off cash, it is in decline. The new company outlined a strategy of shifting its revenue mix towards areas with stronger growth potential, announcing a DTC offering for MS Now (formerly MSNBC) in the works and new FAST channels, among other initiatives.

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    Jillg366

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  • MSNBC Is Rebranding As MS NOW

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    MS NOW, née MSNBC.
    Photo: Versant

    MSNBC is getting a new name and logo later this year, marking the first major public-facing change to come out of Versant’s upcoming split from NBCUniversal. What’s going on, which other networks will be affected, and will there be a board for Steve Kornacki to drawn on?

    MSNBC will become MS NOW (short for “My Source for News, Opinion, and the World”). “This new name underscores the brand’s mission to serve as the destination for domestic and international breaking news and the best-in-class opinion journalism,” Versant CEO Mark Lazarus announced in a memo obtained by The Hollywood Reporter. “MSNBC has been building toward this moment and welcoming a wave of exceptional journalists to their newsgathering operation. Most importantly, while the name will be different, the brand’s commitment to its audience will not change.”

    MSNBC echoed that sentiment in a public statement confirming the new moniker on August 18. “For our viewers who have watched us for decades, it may be hard to imagine this network by any other name. We understand,” the statement said. “But our promise to you remains as it always has. You know who we are, and what we do.”

    MSNBC has been recruiting for about 100 new roles — and will shed NBC’s signature tail feathers from its logo, network president Rebecca Kutler confirmed in an internal email. “During this time of transition, NBCUniversal decided that our brand requires a new, separate identity,” she wrote. “This decision now allows us to set our own course and assert our independence as we continue to build our own modern newsgathering operation. The future of our success is not tied to remaining within the NBC family and using the peacock as part of our identity.”

    A fair question, considering that it’s less than a year old. In November 2024, NBCUniversal announced that it would spin off most of its cable networks — including MSNBC, USA, CNBC, E! Entertainment, Oxygen, and the Golf Channel — into a new publicly traded media company called Versant. Per Axios, this corporate split is expected to be finalized by the end of 2025. Versant’s portfolio also includes digital companies Fandango, Rotten Tomatoes, GolfNow, GolfPass, and SportsEngine.

    Yup. MSNBC and NBC News were previously under the same corporate structure, but this upcoming Versant split will put an end to that era, and at least one MSNBC host seems excited for the challenge. “If there was ever a time for us to change our name, this is it — because we’re not just separating from NBC News in corporate terms, we’re competing with them now,” Rachel Maddow said in an email to Variety. “So I think the distinction is going to be good for us. What NBC doing in its legacy timeslots — the Today Show, Nightly, Meet the Press — is just a world away from the 24/7 totally independent news operation that we’re able to stand up now, thanks to the spin-off.” It sounds like NBC should expect plenty of competing Capitol coverage; according to reports from fellow Versant brand CNBC, MNSBC MS NOW has hired reporters from CNN, Bloomberg, Politico, and other outlets to establish its first-ever Washington, D.C., bureau.

    Now we’re asking the real questions. According to Adweek, the “map daddy” of MSNBC’s Election Night coverage is sticking with NBC as the chief data analyst for NBC News and NBC Sports.

    USA Network and Golf Channel will merge into a new USA Sports brand, which will join MS NOW in getting a new peacockless logo. And because NBCUniversal wants to keep its bird branding to itself after the split, you can also expect new logos for CNBC, GolfNow, and SportsEngine.

    Returning to the MSNBC name would feel a little counter to Versant’s clear goal of getting people to stop associating it with NBC. But hey, we lived to see HBO Max die and come back, so who knows?

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    Jennifer Zhan

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