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NBC

American broadcast television network

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NBC's headquarters are located in New York City at Rockefeller Center's Comcast Building, the network's longtime home. The network's predecessor parent companies were integral to the center's construction. NBC also notably has offices at the NBC Tower in Chicago, Illinois, and at 10 Universal City Plaza in Los Angeles, California.

Founded in 1926 by the Radio Corporation of America through its newly created "National Broadcasting Company, Inc." division, then shortly thereafter co-owned by General Electric (GE), Westinghouse, and AT&T Corporation, NBC is the oldest of the traditional "Big Three" American television networks in the 21st century (along with ABC and CBS) and is sometimes referred to as the "Peacock Network" in reference to its stylized peacock logo, which was introduced in 1956 to promote the company's innovations in early color broadcasting.

NBC has 12 owned-and-operated stations and has affiliates in almost every TV market in the United States. Some of the stations are also available in Mexico, the Caribbean, and Canada, via pay-television providers or in border areas over the air.

History

NBC was formed in 1926 by the Radio Corporation of America (RCA) as the first and oldest major broadcast network in the United States. NBC was then owned by General Electric (GE), Westinghouse, AT&T Corporation and United Fruit Company. In 1932, the U.S. Government forced GE to sell RCA and NBC due to antitrust violations. Originally as a radio network, it pioneered commercial television in 1939, and the channel introduced colour TV in 1953. In late 1986, GE regained control of RCA through its $6.4 billion purchase of the company. Although it retained NBC, GE immediately closed or sold off most of RCA's other divisions and assets.

In 2004, French media company Vivendi Universal merged its entertainment assets (Vivendi Universal Entertainment) with GE, forming NBCUniversal. Comcast purchased a controlling interest in NBCUniversal in 2011 and acquired GE's remaining stake in 2013.

NBC is the home broadcaster of some of the longest continuously running American television series, including the news program Meet the Press (debuted 1947); Today (debuted 1952); The Tonight Show (debuted nationally 1954); and Saturday Night Live (debuted 1975). The drama series Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, which debuted in 1999, began its 26th season in October 2024 and is currently the longest-running live-action series in American prime-time television history.

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Source and licence. Adapted from the Wikipedia article “NBC” (this version, 2026-09-30) by its contributors, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0. Lablypedia has left out its tables, references and most pictures, and linked it to other Lablypedia articles.