NBC News Cuts 150 Employees

The looming layoffs come as parent company Comcast prepares to spin off MSNBC, CNBC, USA Network and several other cable and digital properties into a new publicly traded company called Versant by the end of the year.

NBC News has been trimming around the edges in anticipation of the deeper cuts, insiders told Status, but the network’s workforce will need to shrink substantially now that it will no longer provide shared resources to MSNBC and CNBC.

The split marks the end of a long and sometimes uneasy relationship between the Peacock Network’s hard-news operation and its opinion-heavy cable offshoot.

Executives have promised to expand reporting and strengthen editorial independence, even as the network’s newsroom and technical operations are rebuilt from scratch under Versant.

CNBC, which has always operated more autonomously than MSNBC, will also become part of Versant but keep its business-focused identity and branding.

Versant, slated to debut on the Nasdaq under the ticker symbol VSNT, will bundle together Comcast’s cable entertainment channels — including E!, Syfy, Bravo, Golf Channel and Oxygen — along with digital platforms such as Fandango, Rotten Tomatoes and GolfNow.

Comcast said the transaction will be tax-free for shareholders, who will receive Versant stock directly.

Versant is projected to start with around $7 billion in annual revenue and relatively little debt, providing a stable base as it spins off from Comcast’s broader media empire.

The new company will be led by Mark Lazarus, the longtime NBCUniversal executive who most recently ran the company’s TV and streaming operations.

Comcast will retain its broadcast network, streaming platform Peacock, Spanish-language outlet Telemundo, Universal Studios and theme parks — the growth engines in broadband and entertainment.

NBCUniversal, which will continue to house NBC News, is expected to focus more heavily on streaming, studio production and live events once the spinoff is complete.