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NBCUniversal, Inc. (formerly known as NBCUniversal Media, LLC in 2011, and NBC Universal, Inc. previously) (and also known as NBCU or NBCUni) is an American media and entertainment company engaged in the production and marketing of entertainment, news, and information products and services to a global customer base. The company owns and operates American television networks, numerous cable channels, and a group of local stations in the United States, as well as motion picture companies, several television production companies, and branded theme parks.
NBC Universal was formed in August 2004 by the merger of General Electric's NBC with Vivendi's Vivendi Universal Entertainment. GE and US cable TV operator Comcast announced a buyout agreement for the company on December 3, 2009. Following regulatory approvals, the transaction completed on January 28, 2011. Comcast subsequently owned 51% of NBC Universal while GE owned 49%. Comcast intended to buy out the rest of GE's stake over the following seven years, but nothing happened until February 12, 2013, when Comcast announced its intention to complete the purchase all at once and assume 100% ownership of the company by the end of March. The deal was finalized on March 19, 2013. Originally, the NBC Universal logo was a combination of the NBC peacock logo and the Universal Studios globe and text. The logo was redesigned by Wolff Olins in January 2011 to reflect the new Comcast ownership and the unity of its two main divisions.
NBC Universal is headquartered in the Rockefeller Plaza in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. The company is one of two successor companies to MCA Inc. (Music Corporation of America), the other being Vivendi through its subsidiary Universal Music Group.
NBCUniversal is the direct owner of Universal Studios and its animation subsidiary Illumination Entertainment.