The Peacock in a jock strap.

What’s in a name?  For NBCUniversal parent company Comcast, everything is in a name.  Among the many assets purchased by the company when they bought the NBC Universal group of networks was a little-watched sports network called Versus.  Versus began its life as the Outdoor Life Network, then changed when bought by NBC; now, Versus is changing again.  Versus has changed over to the NBC Sports Network in the hopes that marrying the NBC Sports brand to the cable channel will boost audience and value.

“In some areas we’re not easy to find, but we think we will give more value to distributors by having that,” said NBC Sports Group Chairman Mark Lazarus.  “This is a five-year plan.  This is going to take time.  We’re going to take a deep breath for about eight days and then we’re ready to start again.  “There is a little bit of a lull. We’ll see over the next few years you’ve got maybe more football, NASCAR, baseball — and we’ll be serious about those discussions when we’re given the opportunity.”

NBC Sports extended its Olympic, NFL, and NHL agreements this year; Versus was known for its coverage of the Tour de France, which is expected to continue.  The name change became official yesterday at 4 PM in the wake of the NHL Winter Classic on NBC.  Before the show, the network was Versus; after the show, the postgame show aired on NBC Sports Network.  It’s  yet another entry into the crowded cable sports TV landscape.

Tags: Outdoor Life Network, Versus, NBC Sports Network, NBC Sports, NBC Universal, Comcast, Mark Lazarus, cable, cable television, rebranding, Versus rebranded as NBC Sports Network, NBCUniversal, NBCU, sports television, sports on tv, NBC Sports to get its own Network, television news, television, sports television news

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