Peacock is currently riding high on Olympics coverage as NBCUniversal leans on its streaming service to carry the bulk of broadcasting from the 2026 Milan-Cortina Games.
The streamer is bound to see an uptick in subscribers from the international competition. However, it’s been down this road several times now, seeing bumps from Notre Dame football, WWE events, NFL Playoff games, and the Super Bowl. And so far, those bumps haven’t added up to profitability.
In late 2024, Comcast, which owns NBCUniversal, said it would, in the wake of substantial losses, begin exploring partnerships for Peacock. Last month, NBCU announced that the streamer lost $552 million during Q4 2025, a 48% increase compared to the streamer’s losses in Q4 2024. While that was expected on the heels of its new 11-year deal with the NBA, and Peacock has seen solid subscription growth and profit gains (up 23% YOY in Q4), the losses continue to mount in the midst of an arms race against Netflix, HBO Max, Hulu, Apple TV, and others.
According to Brian Lawry at Status, it might soon be time for Comcast to consider next steps instead of waiting around for Peacock to become profitable. In speaking with several former executives and current employees, Lawry says it doesn’t appear there is a solid strategy to address the streamer’s financial situation, and the next step might be for the company to consider a merger or joint venture.
“They know they have to buy or sell, and [CEO] Brian [Roberts] has never been a seller,” Lawry was told by a former executive who also described Peacock as the studio’s “problem child.”
Lawry says some potential targets could include Paramount, which is in the midst of its own takeover attempt for Warner Bros. Discovery. While Paramount+ has been a winner for the company, it’s dwarfed in size by Comcast, which could take over and combine efforts for a bigger player in the streaming wars.
Another former NBCU employee said that, if Netflix somehow loses its WBD bid to Paramount, it could turn its attention to Comcast, “either as an acquisition or partnership.”
Comcast’s public reputation presumes they’ll stay the course for as long as they can while everyone else reshuffles the deck chairs. But if the NBA rights deal fails to deliver returns, and the Olympics can’t even improve their bottom line, it doesn’t sound like there are many other ways forward on Peacock’s projected path, other than the white whale that is the NFL.
About Sean Keeley
Along with writing for Awful Announcing and The Comeback, Sean is the Managing Editor for Comeback Media. Previously, he created the Syracuse blog Troy Nunes Is An Absolute Magician and wrote 'How To Grow An Orange: The Right Way to Brainwash Your Child Into Rooting for Syracuse.' He has also written non-Syracuse-related things for SB Nation, Curbed, and other outlets. He currently lives in Seattle where he is complaining about bagels. Send tips/comments/complaints to sean@thecomeback.com.