NBCU's Burke Announces Company Will Pursue Retransmission Fees

While acknowledging retransmission consent fees are "not a good thing" for parent company Comcast, NBCUniversal President & CEO Steve Burke yesterday said that it "will be a 'very good thing' for NBC and was not even something Comcast had factored in when making plans to buy control of the content company" from GE in '09, according to Joe Flint of the L.A. TIMES. Burke said that he "does not expect NBC to be as vocal as Fox, CBS and ABC about retransmission consent fees, but thinks the network should land the same dollars." He added that the net is "still a year or two away from where it needs to be." Flint noted NBC has "struggled in the ratings for several years and this season is premiering many new shows it hopes will give its numbers a boost" (LATIMES.com, 9/14). Burke said, "I don't think we're going to be leading the charge, but we will try to get compensation similar to CBS, ABC and Fox." In N.Y., Claire Atkinson notes fellow "broadcast networks are gaining anywhere between 25 cents a month to 75 cents a month per subscriber." Sources said that Burke and Comcast Chair & CEO Brian Roberts "have made a calculation that they're better off focusing on creating value on the content side of their business than on the cable side because valuations are much better for content businesses." A senior industry exec said, "They're saying, 'Let's get on the retransmission bandwagon for as much as we can.'" But another industry exec said, "The RSNs (regional sports networks), retransmission consent and sports, they're all the money hogs in the process" (N.Y. POST, 9/15).