NBCUniversal has just hired Val Boreland as the President of Entertainment for its spinoff company, SpinCo. This means she’ll be in charge of shows on cable networks like USA Network, CNBC, MSNBC, Oxygen, E! , Syfy, and Golf Channel. Boreland’s experience shows she knows how to buy and create good content. She’s been with NBCUniversal for a while, mostly working on getting content for NBC and Peacock. In fact, she got the streaming rights for hit shows like Yellowstone and The Continental. But Boreland isn’t new to original programming – she has done that before too. For instance, she worked at the music network Revolt and Comedy Central.
Now, people in Hollywood are wondering how much original content she will handle and who will be paying for it. USA Network has two popular scripted series, Resident Alien and The Rainmaker. The Rainmaker might move to NBC or Peacock, which will stay with NBCUniversal. Syfy is currently showing mostly Canadian shows, like SurrealEstate and Revival. USA Network also has a competition show called The Anonymous, but it didn’t make a big splash. E! has some shows, but Oxygen, with its true-crime focus, is airing the most originals. Shows like Cold Justice and Snapped are popular on Oxygen. NBCUniversal exec Cori Abraham might also join SpinCo – she’s been praised for her work. But untangling who does what will be tricky, since many execs like Lisa Katz oversee content across many channels and services.
Universal Studio Group will still make shows for SpinCo, even though it’s under Donna Langley’s control. The spinoff won’t be as big as Disney’s split with 20th Television, but it will need some additional paperwork. NBCUniversal executives are expected to reveal new leadership plans, so SpinCo CEO Mark Lazarus and his team have to wait and see how that affects their strategy.
