Tom Rogers helped launch MSNBC and CNBC. Now he has to help figure out what to do with them with consumers’ appetite for entertainment and information delivered by cable TV on the wane.
Rogers, a veteran media executive who had led companies such as Primedia and TiVo, has been named a senior adviser at Versant, the new media company that is being formed from the bulk of the cable assets of NBCUniversal. Comcast, the corporate parent, is expected to spin off the company at some point before the end of 2025. In addition to MSNBC and CNBC, Versant will also include USA, Oxygen, Golf Channel and E!, among other properties.
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“Tom’s track record of anticipating and driving change in the media business is unmatched,” said Mark Lazarus, CEO of Versant, in a prepared statement. “His insights will be invaluable as we continue to build on the success of Versant’s iconic media portfolio.” In the new role, Rogers is expected to provide counsel on industry trends and dynamics. He will also offer insight into strategy, market positioning, business development opportunities, and ways to strengthen the company’s impact.
Rogers, who once served as counsel to the U.S. House of Representatives Telecommunications, Consumer Protection and Finance Subcommittee, helped NBC branch out into cable when that part of the industry was in its relative infancy. During his tenure at NBC, the company launched CNBC — initially known as the Consumer News and Business Channel — and, in partnership with Microsoft, MSNBC. He also for a time led Primedia, a magazine behemoth backed by Kohlberg Kravis Roberts that specialized in dozens of publications aimed at niche interests — a harbinger of the direct-to-consumer build-up currently in sway among large traditional media conglomerates.
“I’ve spent my career building, transforming, and leading media businesses through change,” said Rogers, in a prepared statement. “Versant represents a rare opportunity to shape the future of a media company that has already begun to make progress toward the huge opportunity of expanding and developing well beyond the cable realm. Versant possesses both the ambition and agility to be a leader in today’s evolving media landscape.”
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