NBCUniversal CEO Jeff Shell is leaving Comcast over ‘inappropriate conduct’

NBCUniversal CEO Jeff Shell is leaving Comcast, efficient instantly. The telecom large made the shock announcement in a terse press launch it issued on Sunday. Following an investigation prompted by a criticism of inappropriate conduct, Comcast says it got here to a “mutual” choice with Shell that he ought to resign his place.

“In the present day is my final day as CEO of NBCUniversal. I had an inappropriate relationship with a lady within the firm, which I deeply remorse,” Shell stated in a joint assertion. “I am actually sorry I let my Comcast and NBCUniversal colleagues down, they’re probably the most proficient individuals within the enterprise and the chance to work with them the final 19 years has been a privilege.”

Comcast has not named a successor to Shell. In a memo obtained by Variety, Comcast CEO Brian Roberts and President Mike Cavanagh advised workers they have been “upset” to share the information. “We constructed this firm on a tradition of integrity. Nothing is extra vital than how we deal with one another. It is best to rely in your leaders to create a secure and respectful office,” they wrote. “When our rules and insurance policies are violated, we’ll at all times transfer rapidly to take acceptable motion, as we’ve executed right here.”

Shell joined Comcast in 2004. He turned the CEO of NBCUniversal in 2020. That very same yr, he oversaw the launch of Peacock. Shell leaves NBCUniversal with out having made the streaming service worthwhile. At the beginning of the yr, Comcast advised traders that it had added five million paying subscribers in the course of the last three months of 2022. Nevertheless, over that very same interval, the corporate misplaced almost $1 billion working the service.