Nbc Universal Company

The most ambitious attempt by television companies to retain their audiences on the Web begins today, and the early reviews are surprisingly good. Hulu.com, a joint venture between NBC Universal and News Corp., will launch with many episodes of hit NBC and Fox shows and a small sampling of movies, all with one-quarter the commercial minutes of regular TV.

Cable giant Comcast Corp., in a filing with the Federal Communications Commission seeking regulatory approval of its $30-billion deal to take control of General Electric's NBC Universal, said it didn't expect the transaction to significantly change the media landscape. The 145-page document accompanying a joint request by the companies to transfer control of NBC's TV station licenses, argued that there was "no plausible basis for claims that the proposed venture will have anti-competitive effects."

When Comcast Corp. assumes control of NBC Universal, the company will inherit a portfolio of news organizations, including a top-shelf network news division that dominates the competition. Powered by the "Today" show in the morning and "NBC Nightly News" in the evening, NBC News is one of the few bright spots at the broadcast network. It's also one of the few aspects of the venture that will be largely new terrain for Comcast. Until now, the Philadelphia-based cable television operator's experience in news has been limited to running a handful of local television channels that produce newscasts, including the East Coast regional network CN8 until it shut down at the end of last year.

The Department of Justice, in a major antitrust review for the Obama administration, will join the Federal Communications Commission in reviewing Comcast Corp.'s deal to take control of General Electric Co.'s NBC Universal. The decision settles a tug of war between the department and the Federal Trade Commission, each of which sought to weigh in on the $30-billion deal announced in December. But other recent big media mergers have been swung to Justice Department lawyers, so the decision did not come as a surprise to regulatory insiders.

Cable giant Comcast Corp., in a filing with the Federal Communications Commission seeking regulatory approval of its $30-billion deal to take control of General Electric's NBC Universal, said it didn't expect the transaction to significantly change the media landscape. The 145-page document accompanying a joint request by the companies to transfer control of NBC's TV station licenses, argued that there was "no plausible basis for claims that the proposed venture will have anti-competitive effects."

In a momentous shift in the balance of power of the entertainment industry, cable television giant Comcast Corp. on Thursday made it official by announcing that it was buying control of NBC Universal from General Electric Co. The proposed $30-billion transaction is the culmination of the longtime ambition by Comcast's chief executive, Brian Roberts, to transform his family-controlled Philadelphia company from a passel of distribution pipes into...

NBC Universal Television on Monday agreed to a three-year deal to finance the newly formed boutique production studio headed by veteran TV executives Gail Berman and Lloyd Braun. The pair -- former top programmers for Fox Broadcasting and ABC -- had initially sought to create an independent production company that would own the programming it produced. The arrangement with NBC Universal, a unit of General Electric Co.

Comcast Corp.'s plan to take control of entertainment giant NBC Universal -- expected to be announced this morning -- will crown Comcast Chief Executive Brian Roberts as Hollywood's newest mogul, even though Roberts lives and works in Philadelphia. But the complex task of meshing the disparate businesses into a single, efficient company will fall to Roberts' chief lieutenant, Steve Burke. Burke, Comcast's chief operating officer, will be charged with running a transformed company.

The Federal Communications Commission has renewed the license of Los Angeles Spanish-language television station KAZA-TV Channel 54, denying an unusual protest brought by rival broadcaster NBC Universal. In November, NBC Universal, which owns the Spanish-language Telemundo network, asked the FCC to deny the license renewal by invoking a rarely used morals clause.

NBC Universal is dropping the curtain on "beautiful downtown Burbank." The media company, which made the town of tract houses the butt of endless jokes, but also brought it prominence as the base of "The Tonight Show," is decamping to nearby Universal Studios. The media company plans to announce today that it will sell much of the 34 acres it owns in Burbank, including the legendary NBC Studios at 3000 W. Alameda Ave.

When Comcast Corp. assumes control of NBC Universal, the company will inherit a portfolio of news organizations, including a top-shelf network news division that dominates the competition. Powered by the "Today" show in the morning and "NBC Nightly News" in the evening, NBC News is one of the few bright spots at the broadcast network. It's also one of the few aspects of the venture that will be largely new terrain for Comcast. Until now, the Philadelphia-based cable television operator's experience in news has been limited to running a handful of local television channels that produce newscasts, including the East Coast regional network CN8 until it shut down at the end of last year.

The proposed marriage of Comcast Corp., the nation's largest cable and broadband provider, with NBC Universal, a Hollywood powerhouse, presents the Obama administration with its first big chance to weigh in on the controversial issue of media consolidation. The deal, announced with fanfare Thursday at NBC Universal's Rockefeller Center headquarters in midtown Manhattan, had politicians and consumer activists calling for an intense review in light of the perceived market domination the new entity would enjoy when it comes to ownership and distribution of movies, TV shows and cable networks that get piped into the home.

In a momentous shift in the balance of power of the entertainment industry, cable television giant Comcast Corp. on Thursday made it official by announcing that it was buying control of NBC Universal from General Electric Co. The proposed $30-billion transaction is the culmination of the longtime ambition by Comcast's chief executive, Brian Roberts, to transform his family-controlled Philadelphia company from a passel of distribution pipes into...

In acquiring legendary Universal Pictures, Comcast Corp. would make its Hollywood debut during a particularly turbulent time for the movie business. Not only are all studios grappling with declining DVD sales and shifting consumer habits in entertainment, but Universal is also struggling to correct course from a prolonged box-office slump, runaway production costs and turmoil in the executive suites. Comcast wouldn't be able to exert much influence over the operations of Universal until well into next year after its merger with NBC Universal is finalized.

Comcast Corp.'s plan to take control of entertainment giant NBC Universal -- expected to be announced this morning -- will crown Comcast Chief Executive Brian Roberts as Hollywood's newest mogul, even though Roberts lives and works in Philadelphia. But the complex task of meshing the disparate businesses into a single, efficient company will fall to Roberts' chief lieutenant, Steve Burke. Burke, Comcast's chief operating officer, will be charged with running a transformed company.

Peter Chernin, who stepped down as president of media conglomerate News Corp. this summer, is back in the spotlight. That didn't take long. The veteran television and movie studio chief has been a key, behind-the-scenes advisor on cable TV giant Comcast Corp.'s negotiations to take control of NBC Universal. The revelation this week of Chernin's involvement has prompted speculation that the executive could emerge as a powerful player at NBC Universal if Philadelphia-based Comcast succeeds with its bid. Chernin's new role is intriguing because of his well-known desire to head his own enterprise -- one where he's firmly in charge, no longer the odd man out of a family dynasty or beholden to a headstrong mogul.

Studio mogul-turned-Internet entrepreneur Barry Diller severed his remaining ties to Hollywood on Wednesday, agreeing to sell back to NBC Universal for $3.4 billion his company's minority stake in its movie studio, theme parks and TV cable channels. Diller's IAC/InterActiveCorp, owner of the Home Shopping Network and Expedia, was paid $1 billion in cash and got back 56.6 million shares of IAC valued at $1.4 billion that NBC Universal held, the companies said.

NBC Universal rolled out a cannon to shoot down a rebel Boston television station that says it will not carry Jay Leno at 10 p.m. when the comedian's show shifts to prime time in the fall. The media giant said Friday that it would yank all of its NBC programming from Boston's WHDH-TV if the station carried out its threat to ditch Leno -- who grew up outside Boston -- and instead run a local news broadcast at 10.

Call it the Comcast Friends and Advisors plan. The cable television giant may not have deep roots in Hollywood, but it has friends who do. For more than two months, two former high-ranking Fox entertainment executives -- Peter Chernin and Peter Liguori -- have been counseling Comcast Corp. as it negotiates with General Electric Co. to take control of NBC Universal, executives who asked not to be identified said Monday. Chernin, who until July was No. 2 to Rupert Murdoch at News Corp.

General Electric Co. Chief Executive Jeffrey Immelt, sounding less committed to the entertainment business, said Friday that his company was getting its peacocks in a row for a possible change in ownership at NBC Universal. The industrial giant has mostly kept quiet about plans to sell part of its stake in NBC Universal as its broadcast TV and movie studio have faltered amid an advertising recession, its programming has missed at the network, and a string of costly box-office duds has prompted the ouster of two top film executives.