Comcast-owned NBCUniversal (NBCU) has reportedly implemented a new round of lay-offs ahead of its planned spin-off of seven cable networks and other assets into a new publicly traded company.A few dozen employees from across its TV and streaming divisions have been let go from marketing and communications roles across the cablenets, broadcaster NBC, its studio and Peacock, in addition to some junior programming roles, according to Deadline.The unscripted teams were particularly hit by the cuts, with senior VP of unscripted formats Jenny Ramirez and senior VP of unscripted current production Stephanie Steele among those exiting, in addition to Bravo development VP Christy Dees.Ramirez joined NBCU three years ago after previously working at Turner Broadcasting, while Steele has been at the company for around 15 years, with credits including Peacock docuseries Amber: The Girl Behind the Alert and Who Killed Robert Wone? Dees has been with Bravo for 15 years, working on many of its major franchises.Since the turn of the year, Comcast has undertaken several major changes in terms of structure and personnel.Among these, former Peacock president Kelly Campbell left in January, NBCU chairman of content distribution Matt Bond revealed he was retiring and children’s net Universal Kids was shuttered.January also saw the company restructure its television group, with Pearlena Igbokwe and Frances Berwick taking on expanded roles and several positions being cut, including that of Corie Henson, the former executive VP of unscripted content, competition and gameshows for NBCU Entertainment.The changes have all come as Comcast prepares to spin off most of its cable assets (excluding Bravo) into a new company, currently dubbed SpinCo.The public company will consist of USA Network, CNBC, MSNBC, Oxygen, E!, Syfy and Golf Channel, in addition to digital assets Fandango, Rotten Tomatoes, GolfNow and SportsEngine. Last week, Comcast execs said it remains on course to complete the spin-off around the end of the year.The SpinCo executive team is now largely confirmed, with Mark Lazarus as CEO, Val Boreland as president of entertainment and David Novak as chairman, among several other appointments.
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