NBC UNIVERSAL RE-NAMES NBC UNIVERSAL TELEVISION STUDIO AS UNIVERSAL MEDIA STUDIOS
Studio Continues Mission as Premier Content Provider For TV and Digital Platforms
UNIVERSAL CITY, California - June 14, 2007 - NBC Universal will turn a new page as it re-christens its former NBC Universal Television Studio as Universal Media Studios. The new name more fully describes the company's mission to be the premier content provider for television and digital platforms, spanning all television dayparts and creative genres.
The announcement was made today by Ben Silverman and Marc Graboff, Co-chairmen, NBC Entertainment and Universal Media Studios, as well as Katherine Pope, President, Universal Media Studios.
Said Silverman: "NBC Universal is the premier content company on the planet and this name change reflects our TV studio's natural evolution as digital distribution expands and more platforms need premier ideas and programming."
Said Graboff: "Now that we have our key players in place at the studio and are entering a new season, it makes perfect sense to take this bold step of re-branding ourselves for the future."
Po pe added: "We want to make it clear that we are the first stop for creative talent with innovative ideas and great stories to be told. Universal Media Studios will use its considerable resources and the multiple distribution platforms available to it to successfully exploit great entertainment product to a global audience."
The name change becomes effective immediately.
Universal Media Studios is one of the country's largest and most successful television production companies, responsible for more than 15 of television's most critically acclaimed, hit primetime series. Some of the series produced by the studio include the highest-rated scripted series this season, "House"; the Emmy Award-winning comedy "The Office"; the highest-rated new series of the season, "Heroes," and critically acclaimed cable hits "Battlestar Galactica" and "Monk."
Other primetime series produced by the studio include the legendary "Law & Order"-branded dramas, "30 Rock," "Friday Night Lights," "Las Vegas," "Eureka," "Psych," the upcoming new series "Bionic Woman," "Life," "Lipstick Jungle," and "The IT Crowd," and the current hit USA miniseries "The Starter Wife." Late-night fare includes "Saturday Night Live," "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno," "Late Night with Conan O'Brien" and "Last Call with Carson Daly." The studio also produces the NBC daytime drama "Passions," which will re-launch on DirecTV in September.
Universal Media Studios is a full-service production company that was established (as NBC Universal Television Studio) when NBC acquired the assets of Universal in May 2004, carrying on the legacy of both NBC Studios and Universal Network Television.
NBC Studios first made its mark in the 1950s with NBC's hit western "Bonanza" and went on to create series including "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air," "Providence," and "Will & Grace." Universal Television was created in 1951, and its roster of memorable programs includes "Leave It to Beaver," "Columbo," "The Rockford Files" and "Miami Vice," among dozens of others.
Landmark programs in the longform arena have included "Peter the Great" (winner of three Emmys), "An Early Frost" (winner of four Emmys and a Peabody Award), the acclaimed miniseries "Rich Man, Poor Man," and the first made-for-television movie, "See How They Run," which aired on NBC in 1964.
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