MSNBC will change its name later this year to MS Now (My Source News Opinion World) and drop the peacock image from its branding. These are the first significant public-facing changes in Versant's upcoming separation from Comcast's NBCUniversal.

In addition to MS NOW, USA Network and Golf Channel will merge into a new USA Sports brand and CNBC will change its logo but retain its name

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.

Comcast unveiled eight new members of the first board of directors of Versant Media Group, which will house the bulk of NBCUniversal’s cable networks and certain digital businesses, including Versant CEO Mark Lazarus.

Mark Lazarus, who's leading Versant, announced that MSNBC would trade its famous name for a new one: My Source News Opinion World, or MS Now.

The Versant split means that journalists and executives that have previously worked for both networks now have to choose one.