Brad and Angelina are OK. David and Victoria are all right. But never has there been a showbiz pairing like this.
In a move that might not register to the average TV watcher but that, trust us, is a big deal here in Hollywood, Comcast (our very own mothership!) announced that, after months of negotiations, it will be forming a joint venture with NBC Universal in a pact worth an estimated $30 billion.
The deal would combine the programming assets from both companies under one roof, from Keeping Up With the Kardashians, The Soup, Ruby and Attack of the Show to 30 Rock, Top Chef, White Collar, Ghost Hunters and The Tonight Show.
All told, the new company would include E! (represent!), Style, Versus, the Golf Channel, G4, NBC, CNBC, MSNBC, Bravo, USA, Syfy, Telemundo, 10 regional sports channels, the Universal Pictures film studio, Universal Studios theme parks, more than two dozen TV stations, the broadcast rights to the 2012 Olympics and other major sporting events, and a stake in Hulu.
And while some leading talent (here's to you, Conan O'Brien) have wasted no time in addressing their new bosses, the deal still has to go through regulatory approval. Once it does, Comcast will have a 51 percent stake in the entity.
Which means Alec Baldwin was half right in those Hulu ads. It's a plot involving the universe, but there's nothing evil about it.
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