Spectrum News acquires New England Cable News from NBCUniversal

Spectrum News announced an agreement with New England Cable News and NBCUniversal to acquire substantially all of NECN’s assets, including its existing distribution agreements throughout New England.

The transaction expands Spectrum News’ local journalism reach to viewers in Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Vermont, the company said.

In the coming months, Spectrum News networks in Maine and Massachusetts will combine with NECN and rebrand as Spectrum News NECN. The combined network will be based in NECN’s studios in Massachusetts.

The new network will continue to be available to existing NECN distributors throughout New England.

It also will be available to Spectrum customers in Maine and Massachusetts and to Comcast’s Xfinity TV customers in Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Vermont.

“This agreement represents a significant milestone for Spectrum News as we grow our operation in New England and expand our viewership to additional markets across the country,” said Mike Bair, executive vice president of Spectrum Networks. “We look forward to building on a storied local news brand and honoring the importance of local news that serves communities throughout New England.”

NECN currently broadcasts from the NBCUniversal Boston Media Center which opened in 2020 as a consolidated hub for NECN, NBC 10 Boston Telemundo Boston. 

Spectrum News has expanded its portfolio in recent years, launching additional local linear television news networks, a streaming news network called Spectrum News+, a Spanish-language news network called Spectrum Noticias, and digital platforms including a mobile news app and connected TV apps on Xumo Stream Box, Roku and Apple TV.

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