Versus Officially Rebranding To NBC Sports Network On Jan. 2

Versus "officially will turn into the NBC Sports Network on Jan. 2," according to John Ourand in this week's SPORTSBUSINESS JOURNAL. The name change, which "has been rumored for much of the last year, is timed to coincide with NBC’s broadcast of the NHL Winter Classic and the run-up to NBC’s February telecast of Super Bowl XLVI." NBC's other sports channels "will not be part of this rebranding." The RSNs "will keep their Comcast SportsNet names," though NBC Sports Group Chair Mark Lazarus said that "most of the channels' on-screen graphics will evolve to eventually take on the look and feel of the NBC Sports Group." As part of the Versus rebrand, the NBC Sports Group is "updating its logo, making its peacock larger and using new fonts for NBC Sports." The Winter Classic will be the "first big sports event to feature" the new logo (SPORTSBUSINESS JOURNAL, 8/1 issue). In Philadelphia, Bob Fernandez notes Versus has "had major operations at the Comcast Center in Philadelphia but is now under the control of NBC Sports" in N.Y. The "goal of the Versus name change -- and other changes expected to be announced in the coming months -- is to make the sports channel more popular with fans so that Comcast can charge higher per-subscriber fees for it." NBC officials said that there will be "greater coordination in sports coverage between NBC's broadcast-TV operations and the cable channel" (PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER, 8/1). USA TODAY's Michael McCarthy notes since "completing its takeover of NBC Universal, Comcast has been making its family of broadcast, cable and regional sports networks play nice together." That is why viewers are "seeing NBC Sports talent such as Johnny Miller popping up on sister network the Golf Channel and Versus showing Notre Dame and Triple Crown horse racing that used to air on NBC" (USA TODAY, 8/1).