Media & Broadcasting · RCA ties 1919–1932 · NBC ownership 1986–2013

NBC & RCA

Radio, television and broadcasting history.

NBCUniversal now owned by Comcast.

Vintage-style artistic recreation of GE's historic businesses.

Business history

GE helped form the Radio Corporation of America (RCA) in 1919; RCA founded NBC in 1926.

GE's own station WGY in Schenectady began broadcasting in 1922, and GE ran early television experiments there.

GE acquired RCA, including NBC, in 1986. NBCUniversal was later formed and GE completed its exit in 2013.

Acquired · Acquired 1986
RCA
GE bought RCA, NBC's parent company and itself a GE creation from 1919, in 1986.
Ownership outcome: GE kept NBC, sold RCA consumer electronics to Thomson in 1987, and licensed out the RCA name.
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Founded · 1989 – 2013
CNBC
Business news channel launched by NBC under GE in 1989.
Ownership outcome: Owned by Comcast through NBCUniversal.
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Joint venture · 1996 – 2013
MSNBC
News channel launched in 1996 as a joint venture between NBC and Microsoft.
Ownership outcome: Moved into Comcast's media spin-off (Versant) as MS NOW.
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Acquired · Acquired 2002
Telemundo
Spanish-language TV network bought by NBC in 2002.
Ownership outcome: Owned by Comcast through NBCUniversal.
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Merged · 2004 – 2013
NBCUniversal
Formed in 2004 when NBC combined with Vivendi Universal Entertainment. GE held 80%.
Ownership outcome: Comcast took 51% in 2011 and bought the rest of GE's stake in 2013.
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