What Is Versant, and Why Did Comcast Spin Off Its Cable Channels?

Matt Strauss says NBCUniversal spun some cable assets into Versant last year because the channels that stayed worked better together. As chairman of the NBCUniversal Media Group he oversees the broadcast network, Bravo, Peacock, NBC Sports, NBC News, and Telemundo.

Nilay Patel describes Versant as the company that took most of the former NBCU cable channels, including CNBC and MSNOW. The ownership stake in The Verge's parent company, which used to sit with NBCUniversal, now belongs to Versant. Strauss's point on the channels that remained is that they reinforce each other. NBC has been a megaphone for Peacock. As viewing fragmented, broadcast ratings kept growing, and that reach helped build the streaming service. Peacock finds cord cutters and people who did not grow up watching NBC, then sends some of them back to NBC and Bravo.

He calls that loop a flywheel and argues for centers of excellence: content first, platform second, aimed at maximum reach and maximum engagement.