NBCUniversal to Sell VERSANT Inventory

VERSANT, Comcast’s planned spin-off consisting of select news, sports and entertainment assets, has clinched a two-year deal with NBCUniversal for advertising sales.

U.S. VERSANT advertising inventory will be managed under NBCUniversal’s One Platform banner, including CNBC, E!, Golf Channel, MSNBC, Oxygen, Syfy, USA and digital platforms, for the next two Upfront cycles.

Mark Marshall, NBCUniversal’s chairman of global advertising and partnerships, will continue to manage the sales strategy and revenue for NBCUniversal and VERSANT’s key premium properties, working with Tom Winiarski, who will transition to VERSANT in the newly created role of executive VP of ad sales strategy and monetization.

“NBCUniversal first introduced One Platform to make it easy for our clients to access the premium content across our ecosystem in one place,” said Marshall. “By entering into this partnership with VERSANT, we’re maintaining that simplicity for our partners and ensuring a single, dedicated sales team will represent the companies’ collective inventory and drive revenue for all the iconic IP that our viewers love.”

“We’re building VERSANT as a new, modern media company equipped with industry-leading brands across news, sports and entertainment, and the ability to strike the right partnerships to fuel investment and drive revenue,” said Mark Lazarus, CEO of VERSANT. “NBCUniversal operates a best-in-class advertising sales and strategy division, and partnering with Mark Marshall and his team, alongside Tom Winiarski in his new role, will enable VERSANT to operate seamlessly and with agility from the start.”