Comcast’s cable networks spinoff raises questions about future of the TV business

Comcast just jump-started a new season of major change across the television industry. And no one quite knows what will happen next.

Comcast just jump-started a new season of major change across the television industry. And no one quite knows what will happen next. On Wednesday morning, the media giant confirmed that it is spinning off most of its cable channels, including MSNBC and CNBC, into a separate publicly traded company. The new company doesn’t have a formal name yet — Comcast is simplycalling it “SpinCo” — a suitable label since employees’ heads are spinning with questions. ­­ And the questions aren’t confined to Comcast. Will other streaming-focused media companies, like The Walt Disney Company or CNN’s parent Warner Bros. Discovery, spin off their cable channels too? How might the cable bundle business model be impacted? It’s too soon to know. But the spinoff announcement is clearly the beginning of something, not the end, and analysts are predicting a new period of consolidation across the industry. Mike Cavanagh, Comcast’s president, said in an internal memo Wednesday that the tax-free transaction, which will take about a year to complete, “positions both SpinCo and NBCUniversal to play offense in a changing media landscape.” Differing views about Comcast offloading its cable channels were evident on one of the affected channels, CNBC, during Wednesday morning’s business news coverage.