NBC & Its Operations

The National Broadcast Corporation (NBC) is one of the "big three" television networks in the United States. NBC, along with the Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS) and the American Broadcasting Company (ABC) dominated television during its formative years, and today continue to be responsible for a large share of the entertainment programming. However, recent years have seen competition emerge from a variety of quarters. Cable television has made significant inroads into the traditional networks' markets, and the Fox network, owned by media magnate Rupert Murdoch, has begun to compete with the networks in traditional markets. In addition, the networks must contend with the proliferation of video cassette recorders (VCRs) which permit potential television viewers to watch prerecorded films, or to record shows off the air and watch them later, but fast forward through the commercials. This research examines NBC and its operations in this highly competitive market, and considers its future in a rapidly changing media environment.

During the 1980s, NBC was a leader in the ratings, buoyed by dramatic shows such as St. Elsewhere and Hill Street Blues, and by comedies such as The Cosby Show and Family Ties. It was at this time (1986) that General Electric (GE) purchased NBC. However, the success that NBC had in the 1980s dwindled in the early 1990s when the above shows went off the air and when the company suffered the loss of Johnny Carson and Davi

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as earned the respect both of those within the network as well as outside analysts. Wright has brought in managers who were formerly producers and who thus have a strong understanding of the environment in which they operate. Richard Ebersol, a former producer of sports at ABC was hired to head the Sports division, and Don Ohlmeyer, who owned a production company was brought in to head NBC Entertainment. The result is a management team that has the respect of its subordinates and which has been able to help the network recover some of the ground it lost in the early 1990s. This turnaround is evidenced by several events which occurred by early 1994. At that time, NBC had rebounded from being in third place in the ratings competition to vying for first place with ABC. Shows such as Seinfeld, ER, and Frasier had successfully built an audience for themselves that rivalled NBC's 1980s successes. The network's magazine shows, which are inexpensive to produce and thus highly profitable, were successful, and the news division was more profitable than at any other time in its history (exact figures for NBC are difficult to come by because the network is a wholly owned subsidiary of GE, which does not officially release financial in

Category: Business - N