NBC Universal CEO Jeff Zucker issued a memo Wednesday, Dec.
16, detailing the members of the transition team that will oversee the firm's
proposed take over by Comcast Corp. The memo was first revealed by
Mediabistro's TV Newser. According to the Website, the "Operational Transition
Team," will be led by Salil Mehta, who is described by NBC insiders as Zucker's
right hand man. Mehta's official title is president of business operations,
strategy and development. Joe Donnelly,
the CFO of Comcast's programming group will work together with Mehta. "Jeff Shell, president of the Comcast
Programming Group, and Jeff Gaspin, chairman of NBCU TV Entertainment, will
both be heavily involved with this team," writes Zucker in the memo.
A second "Administrative Transition Team," will be led by
Comcast's Bob Victor, senior VP of strategic and financial planning and John
Eck, president of NBC TV Network and Mediaworks, who is described as "NBCU's
lead rep working with Bob."
The goal of the transition teams is to plan for how the
joint venture will operate after the deal closes which is expected to be
anywhere between nine month to 18 months away. Zucker stresses in the memo that
transition planning will be "conducted in a manner consistent with the rules of
conduct that have been put in place that prohibit our two companies from acting
as one combine company prior to closing."
