The cable network spinoff of Comcast could serve as a message to the media industry about the need for change.

• Lots of uncertainty surrounds Comcast's spinoff of its NBCUniversal cable portfolio.
• Comcast may be signaling to the media industry that consolidation is necessary through a potential transaction.
• Comcast shares posted modest gains Wednesday.

On Wednesday, shares of NBCUniversal posted modest gains after the company announced plans to spin off all of its cable networks, except Bravo, into a publicly traded entity.

The uncertainty of the proposed transaction is reflected in investors' initial indifference towards it.

Comcast's shares may rise if the company divests from declining assets, such as cable networks that are losing subscribers and revenue to streaming services. However, this may not be enough to offset the negative impact of these declining assets on Comcast's shares, as Wall Street tends to view assets with slumping revenue and profit negatively.

The spinoff of NBCUniversal's cable networks is uncertain, and it's unclear how much Comcast investors will care. The cable networks generated about $7 billion in revenue over the 12 months ended Sept. 30, which is relatively small compared to the rest of Comcast's $116 billion in revenue.

If Comcast is divesting from cable networks due to Wall Street's disapproval, why would investors want a company with diminishing assets?

Disney's cable networks are more integrated with its streaming platforms than NBCUniversal's cable networks are with Peacock.

SpinCo, a new company, may generate cash and pay dividends to investors seeking to invest in declining cash assets. However, this is typically a private equity strategy. It's possible that cable networks may eventually move towards private ownership, which would allow them to be harvested for cash.

Peacock's cable assets may no longer be solely used for marketing and content distribution, allowing SpinCo's CEO-to-be, Mark Lazarus, to explore new licensing agreements with other streaming services.

Instead of being directed toward Peacock and NBCUniversal's theme parks, SpinCo's profits can be invested in businesses such as CNBC and MSNBC.

Another possible route for SpinCo could be as a consolidation entity for other cable networks. Comcast is intentionally designing SpinCo with minimal debt. Perhaps the company could absorb some of the debt and its cable networks. The same applies to other cable networks.

The bigger motivation

Comcast's motivations for not doing this may indicate to the media industry that it's time to transition to a new phase.

""Consolidation is necessary because there isn't enough revenue to cover costs in these businesses, as Kevin Mayer, co-CEO of Candle Media and former Disney executive, stated in an interview," said Mayer."

During the earnings call earlier this month, David Zaslav, the CEO of Warner Bros. Discovery, stated that sentiment.

"Zaslav stated that the industry requires meaningful consolidation to improve the consumer experience and make businesses stronger. He emphasized that the best content will prevail only if there is consolidation."

Perhaps it's better to try something than to do nothing at all, even if SpinCo fails as a publicly traded company and Comcast doesn't get any multiple expansion. Signaling to the media world that it's time for a change may be worthwhile in the long run.

If Comcast plans to pursue a large merger during a Donald Trump administration, it may be beneficial to divest from MSNBC. In the past, Trump's Department of Justice blocked AT&T's acquisition of Time Warner, reportedly due to Trump's dislike of CNN.

Comcast shares closed up 1.5% Wednesday.

Disclosure: Comcast's NBCUniversal is the parent company of CNBC.