Comcast’s corporate restructuring means there will soon be two television networks with “NBC” in their name (CNBC and MSNBC), and they will no longer have any corporate affiliation with NBC News.

How this will affect the audiences of these networks and the people who work there still needs to be understood. Their new corporate leader, Mark Lazarus, visited the set of MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” as the plan was announced Wednesday and spoke with network staff during a morning conference call to address concerns.

Comcast is spinning off most of its cable networks, including USA, Oxygen, E!, SYFY and Golf Channel, into a separate company. This acknowledges how streaming is considered the future and cable networks are ultimately a hurdle.

Over the course of a lifetime, networks have gone from upstarts to profitable superstars to underdogs next to a legacy operation like NBC.

Questions range from simple to complex

Lazarus, chairman of NBC Universal Media Group, becomes CEO of the newly formed cable network company, tentatively called “SpinCo.” Cesar Conde, who oversees CNBC and MSNBC as president of NBC Universal News Group, will drop those networks from his portfolio but will remain responsible for news operations of NBC News, NBC News Now streaming, Telemundo and NBC-owned local stations. .

Bank of America research analyst Jessica Reif Ehrlich said the presence of Lazarus and Anand Kini, who will be SpinCo’s chief operating officer and chief financial officer, bodes well for the new company. “You can’t dismiss this as getting rid of terrible assets because these are talented managers,” he said.

Questions for the future on MSNBC range from simple to will he keep his name? – to the complex.

Lazarus told MSNBC staff and studios that MSNBC staff and studios are based in the same Rockefeller Center offices as NBC News, and it was unclear Wednesday whether they would remain or move elsewhere.

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MSNBC’s relationship with NBC News has caused some awkwardness, especially since the network is known for its stable of liberal commentators despite being committed to a news division that emphasizes neutrality. NBC News journalists such as Katy Tur, Jose Diaz-Balart, Chris Jansing, and numerous reporters are on the network for most of MSNBC’s broadcast day.

It is unclear whether arrangements can be made for cross-pollination to continue; For example, where will Steve Kornacki land? — or whether MSNBC will shoulder the expense of setting up its own newsgathering operation or place more emphasis on commentary.

It’s a tense time at MSNBC for other reasons. The network has seen a dramatic drop in viewership since Donald Trump’s election victory; But it’s common for news networks that primarily appeal to one side of the political divide to lose viewers when their candidates are defeated. History shows that most viewers return, and MSNBC executives are predicting that.

It’s less clear whether a second Trump administration would make life harder. Trump ally Steve Bannon sent a special warning to the network’s hosts and producers on his radio show last week. “You better worry,” he said. “You’d better be a lawyer.”

‘Something bittersweet’?

CNBC was founded in 1989 and MSNBC was founded in 1996. They seem to be inextricably linked to the broadcast network ever since, and the sharing of legal, promotional, technical and other support is something else that needs to be worked out.

Because of its financial concentration, CNBC has been more independent from NBC News than its cable brethren. Its operations are even physically separate, with offices in Englewood Cliffs, NJ. However, NBC News often uses CNBC reporters for their business expertise in broadcasting and streaming service.

“I totally empathize with people who think this is going to be a bittersweet thing,” Lazarus said, according to MSNBC. “I think it’s exciting because very few times in life do you get the opportunity to be part of what I would call a ‘well-funded startup’.”

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Despite the old-school structure of a company comprised of cable properties, Comcast executives are optimistic about the company’s future, noting that many of them are individually profitable. And there is potential to acquire other networks that are undervalued by major media companies.

Andrew Ross Sorkin, host of CNBC’s “Squawk Box,” said on “Morning Joe” Wednesday that the two cable news networks produced “extraordinary profits” for Comcast that were not reinvested in cable properties.

“What would the bottom line be like if you could take the money coming through these channels and invest in businesses as a standalone entity,” Sorkin said. he asked. “Can you use this money to make other acquisitions? Will there be investments in the business itself? That’s the question.”

A word of advice from Bank of America’s Ehrlich: Save the names. “These are pretty big brand names,” he said. “I wouldn’t advise them to change.”