NBC Universal is close to clinching a minority stake in a new company being started by technology journalists Walt Mossberg and Kara Swisher, according to sources familiar with the situation. AllThingsD with its brand and archives, which is owned by Dow Jone,s was an extension of the popular D: All Things Digital conference.
As part of the expected deal with NBCU, the media company's TV networks are expected to get exclusive access to contents produced by Swisher and Mossberg's new company. NBCU, which is also a unit of Comcast Corp, owns NBC broadcast network as well as CNBC and MSNBC.
AllThingsD, a website owned by Dow Jones & Co, the News Corp unit that also publishes The Wall Street Journal, is being run by Mossberg and Swisher.
In September, Mossberg, Swisher and Dow Jones announced that they wouldn't be renewing their partnership when their contract expires at the end of the year. As a result, Mossberg, who has been the WSJ's personal technology columnist since 1991, would be leaving the paper.
After that, both Mossberg and Swisher announced that they plan to start a new company with a new name next year. Several media companies, including Hearst Corp, had preliminary talks with the pair with regard to investing in their company.
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