NBC Owned Stations Partner With NECN on Sales

NBC Owned Television Stations, the new name given to NBC Local Media, is partnering with NECN (New England Cable News) on a deal "that will give the NBC Owned Television Stations group responsibility for selling national advertising for NECN," said NBC in a statement.

NECN is owned by Comcast, which of course merged with NBCUniversal earlier this year.

The partnership starts at the end of June. It gives NECN a stronger ad sales presence, and "bolsters the ad sales reach of the NBC-owned stations," said NBC, "which will now include eight of the nation's top 10 television markets."

"The addition of NECN and the Boston television market to our portfolio enables us to offer an even more robust product to advertisers interested in reaching consumers across multiple platforms in the nation's largest markets," said Frank Comerford, chief revenue officer of NBC Owned Television Stations.

Sunbeam TV owns the NBC affiliate in DMA No. 7.

"NECN adds a strong New England presence to the national ad sales capabilities of the NBC-owned stations, and having NECN more closely associated with NBC's local stations and other media assets presents new opportunities for advertisers and the network alike," said Ray Warren, executive vice president and chief revenue officer for Comcast Sports Group.

Michael Malone

Michael Malone is content director at B+C and Multichannel News. He joined B+C in 2005 and has covered network programming, including entertainment, news and sports on broadcast, cable and streaming; and local broadcast television, including writing the "Local News Close-Up" market profiles. He also hosted the podcasts "Busted Pilot" and "Series Business." His journalism has also appeared in The New York Times, The L.A. Times, The Boston Globe and New York magazine.