Former Comcast exec defends Byron Allen lawsuit, exposes company’s dealings with Black networks

"Comcast has not been a good business partner."

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Another major voice is speaking out about cable giant Comcast and its shaky relationship with Black business owners- and this time, it’s a company insider.

On Friday, Paula Madison, a former NBC Universal executive, released a statement alleging that the company left Black cable networks to fail, even while it touted them as examples of diversity. Comcast owns NBC Universal.

Madison was present during MOU (Memorandum of Understanding) negotiations in 2011, in which Comcast agreed to launch channels led by Black entrepreneurs such as Sean “Diddy” Combs (REVOLT) and Magic Johnson (ARISE).

However, Madison says her concerns about a lack of meaningful distribution (I.e. guaranteed subscribers and revenue), fell on deaf ears.

“COMCAST MADE IT CLEAR THAT IT WAS ONLY COMMITTED TO LAUNCHING THESE NETWORKS, AND NOT GIVING THEM THE NECESSARY DISTRIBUTION AND ECONOMIC SUPPORT TO SUCCEED. PERIOD.”

“I shared these concerns with Comcast — that the African American networks would be positioned to fail — and Comcast made it clear that it was only committed to launching these networks, and not giving them the necessary distribution and economic support to succeed. Period.”