NEW YORK, NY – April 17, 2012 – NBC Owned Television Stations, the NBCUniversal division that oversees the 10 local television stations the company owns, and Comcast Sports Group, the division of the NBC Sports Group that consists of 14 regional networks, today announced a new national advertising sales partnership. Under the agreement, the NBC Owned Television Stations group will sell national advertising for four Comcast SportsNets (New England, Mid-Atlantic, Northwest and Philadelphia). The new partnership, which combines Comcast Sports Group’s passionate and engaged audiences with the NBC Owned Stations’ industry-leading advertising sales organization, will be phased in across the four markets over the next several months, starting with New England and Mid-Atlantic this month, followed by Northwest at the end of May and Philadelphia at the end of June.
The agreement with Comcast Sports Group follows a successful partnership that launched last summer with NECN (New England Cable News), which gave NBC Owned Stations responsibility for selling national advertising on behalf of NECN, the nation’s largest regional news network and also part of Comcast Sports Group.
“We used NECN as a test for this new model and it worked so well that we decided to expand this relationship to more markets,” said Ray Warren, Executive Vice President and Chief Revenue Officer for Comcast Sports Group. “Our regional sports networks have delivered a lot of value to advertisers because of the hard-to-reach male demos we attract. By combining selected regional sports networks with the NBC-owned stations, we’re now able to create a complete local package with compelling cross-demo appeal for advertisers that is unprecedented in its reach.”
“Teaming up with Comcast Sports Group combines our winning sales organization and strong local stations with their unmatched and passionate fan base,” said Frank Comerford, Chief Revenue Officer and President of Commercial Operations for NBC Owned Television Stations. “This addition to our national sales portfolio boosts our appeal to advertisers who are trying to reach consumers in some of the nation’s biggest markets.”
To support this new business focus, Joseph Gallagher has been tapped as Vice President of National Sales for the Regional Sports Networks, reporting into the NBC Owned Stations division. Gallagher has worked in advertising sales for several media companies, including Raycom Sports, Disney – ABC Family and ReelzChannel, bringing more than 25 years of experience to the role. He will be working with the Comcast Sports Group and NBC Owned Stations’ National Sales Organizations across the country.
About NBC Owned Television Stations
NBC Owned Television Stations is the division of NBCUniversal that includes 10 local television stations and their digital channels and websites, as well as a group of out-of-home properties and a production company. The 10 stations produce and deliver compelling and unique local news, information and entertainment programming to viewers in the communities they serve, which include New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Philadelphia, San Francisco Bay Area, Dallas-Fort Worth, Washington, D.C., Miami, San Diego and Connecticut, with a goal of connecting to their audiences anytime and anywhere.
About Comcast Sports Group
Comcast Sports Group, part of the NBC Sports Group, consists of 14 local networks that deliver 2,400 sporting events annually and breaking news and analysis to more than 50 million cable and satellite homes. Comcast Sports Group’s networks are: Comcast SportsNet Bay Area, Comcast SportsNet California, Comcast SportsNet Chicago, Comcast SportsNet Houston, Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic, Comcast SportsNet New England, Comcast SportsNet Northwest, Comcast SportsNet Philadelphia, SNY, CSS and Comcast Sports Southwest. Comcast Sports Group also manages NECN (New England Cable News), the nation’s largest regional news network, and The Comcast Network, based in Philadelphia and Washington, which delivers community-oriented programming. For more information, visit ComcastSportsNet.com.
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