comcast to buy control of nbc universal in $30b transaction

from latimes: In a momentous shift in the balance of power of the entertainment industry, cable television giant Comcast Corp. on Thursday made it official by announcing that it was buying control of NBC Universal from General Electric Co. The proposed $30-billion transaction is the culmination of the longtime ambition by Comcast's chief executive, Brian Roberts, to transform his family-controlled Philadelphia company from a passel of distribution pipes into a leading producer of movies and TV shows and owner of prominent cable channels. The deal underscores how the high profit-margin business of cable TV - not a broadcast network or a Hollywood movie studio - has become the financial backbone of media conglomerates. "Cable channels are the best part of the media business today; they are really the crown jewels of any entertainment company," Comcast Chief Operating Officer Steve Burke told analysts in a conference call.

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