MSNBC will be rebranded as My Source News Opinion World, or MS NOW , later this year, as the network prepares for its spinoff from Comcast , while it also will shed the Peacock logo.

The change, announced on Monday, comes as MSNBC has been building its own news division, as NBC News will no longer be a sister outlet following the spinoff. MSNBC and other Comcast cable networks will be part of a separate company, Versant , led by Mark Lazarus.

It also is a bit of a surprise as expectations had been that the network would retain the name it has had since its launch in 1996. But executives determined that retaining the name would create brand confusion with NBC News.

MSNBC President Rebecca Kutler wrote in a memo to employees on Monday, “During this time of transition, NBCUniversa

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