US cable news network MSNBC will rebrand as My Source News Opinion World (MS NOW).
The name change follows a decision from MSNBC’s parent company, Comcast, which saw the US media and telco giant spin off the bulk of NBCUniversal’s cable assets into a new publicly traded company called Versant in 2024.
MSNBC is now being spun off alongside cable networks such as CNBC, USA, Oxygen and E!. However, NBC, Bravo and the Peacock streaming service will stay under the NBCUniversal umbrella.
Launched in 1996, the left-leaning MSNBC stands for Microsoft and National Broadcasting Company, a name formed through its previous partnership with Microsoft. MSNBC’s name change is designed to distance itself from news service NBC News, which will remain part of NBCUniversal. CNBC will keep its name, which originally stood for Consumer News and Business Channel.
As MSNBC will be forced to drop its reliance on the NBC News newsgathering operation, it has been hiring its own staff of journalists under chief Rebecca Kutler. These changes were detailed in a memo to staff by Mark Lazarus, who will run Versant as its founding CEO.
“During this time of transition, NBCUniversal decided that our brand requires a new, separate identity. This decision now allows us to set our own course and assert our independence as we continue to build our own modern newsgathering operation,” Kutler said in a memo, reported by Variety.
Comcast recently unveiled the leadership team for SpinCo as it prepares to spin off its cable television portfolio later in 2025. Discover more here.
.jpg)
IBC launches study to map the media technology talent pipeline
IBC has launched How Did You Get Here?, a study designed to better understand how people enter and build careers in media technology.
Netflix kicks of landmark distribution deal with France’s TF1
Leading French broadcaster TF1’s live channels and streamer TF1+ are now available on Netflix’s platform in France following a landmark distribution deal between the two companies.
UK government sets out plans to give prominence for PSB news on social media
The UK government has set out plans to make social media platforms such as YouTube and Facebook give greater prominence to news from public service media.
Warner Bros. Discovery teams with AWS for agentic AI ad-tech
Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) has partnered with cloud provider Amazon Web Services (AWS) to develop its next-generation advertising experiences built with AWS agentic AI.
Active International picks Comcast Technology Solutions
Comcast Technology Solutions (CTS) has announced that Active International, the global media and corporate trade group, is using Comcast AdFusion to modernise and scale its broadcast ad traffic and creative distribution operations.
