Beth Comstock’s tumultuous two years at NBC Universal are nearing an end, The NY Post reported. General Electric CEO Jeffrey Immelt plans on bringing Comstock – whom he parachuted into NBC in 2005 – back into the GE fold in her former position as chief marketing officer, according to the paper.
The decision to move Comstock, a longtime GE loyalist who is a favored executive of Immelt, back into the GE executive suite is in keeping with GE’s long history of deploying key executives from corporate into its various business units for a stint before returning them to the parent company.
Comstock’s expected move comes as sources told the paper NBC is closing in on a deal to acquire female-focused cable network Oxygen in a bid to bolster its iVillage Web site.
The iVillage 600 million purchase in March 2006 was championed by Comstock and – despite recent momentum – is largely viewed as an overpriced bust, the story said. NBCU did not return requests for comment by deadline.
