VITAMEDIAS
NBC Universal: A media giant is born
Vivendi has agreed to merge its American media interests, including Universal Pictures, with General Electric?s NBC television network. The deal creates the sort of vertically integrated media group that GE has shied away from in the past [...]
The new entity, which could be worth up to $40 billion, is a media monster by any standards. GE?s NBC is contributing the NBC broadcast network; MSNBC, a cable news channel jointly owned with Microsoft; CNBC, a financial network jointly owned with Dow Jones that is gradually regaining its popularity after the dotcom bust; Bravo, an arts channel; and Telemundo, a Spanish-language television station. From Vivendi?s side comes Universal Pictures (whose recent hits include ?2 Fast 2 Furious?, ?Bruce Almighty? and ?A Beautiful Mind?); the Universal theme parks; USA Network, a cable station with a big but ageing audience; the Sci-Fi channel; and Universal Television, which produces popular shows like ?Law & Order?.