MS NOW Experiences Viewer Growth Amid Revenue Challenges Post-Rebrand
An MS Now billboard illuminated New York's Times Square on 17 November 2025, following the rebranding of MSNBC, which spun off some of its cable channels into a new entity called Versant. This visual shift marked a significant transformation for the network, as it aimed to revitalise its identity in a competitive media landscape.
Viewership Increases While Financial Performance Wavers
The United States' largest liberal-leaning network, MS NOW, has achieved double-digit viewership gains since its rebrand from MSNBC, according to CEO Mark Lazarus of parent company Versant. He stated on Tuesday that momentum has accelerated with double-digit growth in total viewers since November, following the rebrand in the fourth quarter of 2025.
Lazarus highlighted that MS NOW's most dedicated viewers engage with the network for between eight and nine hours weekly, ranking it second in engagement across the entire television media landscape. The network, home to popular shows like Morning Joe and The Rachel Maddow Show, had been known as MSNBC since its 1996 launch, with early polling indicating viewer concerns about the name change.
Versant's Financial Struggles and Industry Pressures
Versant, formed earlier in 2025 after NBCUniversal spun off most of its cable television networks, announced that its total revenue for 2025 was $6.69 billion, representing a 5.3% decline from the previous year. The company includes channels such as MS Now, CNBC, the Golf Channel, and USA Network, all facing industry-wide pressures from cord-cutting trends.
Revenue from cable television subscriptions fell by 5.4% from 2024 to 2025, which the company described as a slow and manageable decline compared to more dire predictions. Advertising revenue suffered the largest year-over-year drop, decreasing to $1.58 billion from $1.73 billion in 2024. For the final quarter of 2025, Versant's revenue would have been 6.5% lower than the same period in 2024.
Overall, Versant reported net income attributable to the company of $930 million for 2025. However, its stock price has declined by approximately 27% since the beginning of the year, trading at around $33 per share on Tuesday.
Strategic Focus on News and Sports Programming
Lazarus emphasised the importance of news and sports programming, which he said generates 60% of television viewership for the company. He expressed satisfaction with early returns, noting that live news, live sports, and premium entertainment programming continue to attract large, engaged audiences and robust advertiser demand.
For the full year 2026, Versant expects advertising tied to the upcoming midterm elections and new products, including a direct-to-consumer MS NOW streaming service, to help generate revenue between $6.15 billion and $6.4 billion. When asked about the pending merger of Paramount Skydance and Warner Bros Discovery, Lazarus affirmed Versant's commitment to operating as an independent company, citing a strong set of assets.
This rebranding effort underscores the evolving dynamics in the US television industry, where networks must balance viewer engagement with financial sustainability in an era of digital transformation.
