Comcast split could drive deals, though not necessarily for PE

Comcast split could drive deals, though not necessarily for PE Esther Luz Tue, June 30, 2026 at 12:15 AM GMT+2 3 min read CMCSA Comcast's plan to spin off its media and theme park business, announced on Monday, revived speculation that legacy media could be entering another wave of dealmaking. Under the plan, NBCUniversal and Sky will separate from Comcast's broadband and wireless business, giving existing shareholders shares in both listed entities. The move follows Comcast's January spinoff of Versant Media Group, which houses cable networks such as CNBC, MS NOW, USA Network, E!

and Golf Channel. The sector has reason to consolidate. Cord-cutting keeps hollowing out the cable bundle, the cost of competing in streaming continues to climb, and debt-laden conglomerates are under pressure to simplify sprawling structures.

Investors reacted favorably to today's news, sending Comcast's share price up around 4. 5% during the day's trading. The data, however, suggests that even if the deal floodgates open, PE firms are likely to be highly selective.

Strategic buyers dominate the sector's biggest deals, PitchBook data shows. Alongside the Paramount Skydance - Warner Bros. Discovery merger finalized this year, the all-time top three also include Disney 's $71.

3 billion acquisition of film studio 21st Century Fox and WBD's $42. 4 billion merger with WarnerMedia , in 2019 and 2022, respectively. Private equity's media and adtech bets have largely been focused on smaller, cash-generative assets tied to data, marketing services, distribution and media infrastructure, rather than the biggest Hollywood content libraries.

Some of the largest such deals occurred in 2025, PitchBook data shows. That year, Silver Lake closed its $13 billion take-private of Endeavor , now WME Group, betting on talent representation, sports and live entertainment assets, while TPG acquired DirecTV in a $7. 6 billion transaction that completed AT&T 's retreat from pay TV.

One exception to PE's "picks and shovels" approach to investing in the media sector was the $8 billion merger of Paramount and Skydance, also in 2025. PE firms KKR and RedBird Capital Partners backed the deal, the latter putting up $2 billion. The dominance of strategic investors is clear in the numbers for 2026, which at first glance looks like a banner year for the US media and adtech industries.

M&A in the sector has already reached $134. 2 billion across 333 deals through June 23, eclipsing all full-year figures since 2018, when deal value reached $135. 6 billion.

Yet the headline number is mostly made up of a single transaction: Paramount Skydance's $110 billion acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery. Excluding that deal, 2026 YTD media and adtech M&A value falls to roughly $24.

2 billion. Story Continues The median US media deal this year is just $2. 3 million, against an average near $3.

98 billion—a couple of strategic mega-deals and a long tail of small ones. By segment, movies, music and entertainment accounts for about $112. 3 billion of 2026 deal value across just 33 deals, while media and information services accounts for 248 deals totaling $20.

2 billion. Analysts were quick to float NBCUniversal as a future takeover target, even as Comcast's chairman and co-CEO Brian Roberts insisted the split was "absolutely not" a prelude to a sale. At least as far as PE is concerned, this may be more based on optimism than data.