PAY TELEVISION – GREAT BRITAIN

How the Murdochs lost the fight for Sky

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Original article by Christopher Williams
The Australian Financial Review – Page: R1 & R6 : 31-May-19

The Murdoch family first tried to take full control of Sky in the UK in 2011 through News Corporation, but the attempt was unsuccessful. James Murdoch made another attempt to secure full control of Sky in 2016, this time through Fox. In announcing the bid, Murdoch expressed confidence that it would be approved by regulators within six months. Britain’s Culture Secretary Karen Bradley initially referred the bid to Ofcom, before referring it to the Competition & Markets Authority in September 2017. At around that time, Rupert Murdoch was in the process of putting together a mega media deal that would eventually end up with Comcast rather than Fox securing control of Sky.

CORPORATES
SKY PLC, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, 21ST CENTURY FOX INCORPORATED, GREAT BRITAIN. DEPT OF CULTURE, MEDIA AND SPORT, GREAT BRITAIN. COMPETITION AND MARKETS AUTHORITY, GREAT BRITAIN. OFFICE OF COMMUNICATIONS, COMCAST CORPORATION

Comcast outbids Fox and Walt Disney Co. with $40-billion offer for Europe’s Sky TV

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Original article by Meg James
Los Angeles Times – Page: Online : 22-Sep-18

The independent directors of pan-European satellite broadcaster Sky plc have endorsed Comcast’s successful bid in a corporate auction that was organised by the UK’s Takeovers Panel. Comcast offered $US22.75 per share for Sky, valuing its bid at nearly $US40bn. The rival bid from Rupert Murdoch’s 21st Century Fox – which has a 39 per cent stake in Sky – was $US20.63 per share, which equates to about $US35bn. The auction followed a protracted bidding war for Sky, and Fox’s deal to sell the bulk of its entertainment assets to Walt Disney Company.

CORPORATES
SKY PLC, COMCAST CORPORATION, 21ST CENTURY FOX INCORPORATED, GREAT BRITAIN. THE TAKEOVER PANEL, WALT DISNEY COMPANY, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, FOX NEWS CHANNEL, HULU LLC

Comcast sees Fox and raises in fight for Sky

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Original article by Keach Hagey, Chip Cummins, Ben Dummett
The Australian – Page: 21 : 13-Jul-18

US media group Comcast has trumped 21st Century Fox’s revised takeover offer for pay-TV company Sky. Comcast raised its offer for Sky from Stg12.50 to Stg14.75 per share in response to Fox’s recent move to increase its own offer to Stg14.00 per share. Sources have indicated that Comcast could potentially opt to focus on its bid for Sky rather than press ahead with its $US65bn cash bid for Fox’s entertainment assets.

CORPORATES
COMCAST CORPORATION, SKY PLC, 21ST CENTURY FOX INCORPORATED, WALT DISNEY COMPANY, GREAT BRITAIN. THE TAKEOVER PANEL, NBC UNIVERSAL INCORPORATED, NETFLIX INCORPORATED, ELLIOTT MANAGEMENT CORPORATION, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS

Fox dangles $44bn carrot for Sky buyout

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Original article by Darren Davidson
The Australian – Page: 20 : 12-Jul-18

US media giant 21st Century Fox has increased its cash offer for UK-based pay-TV group Sky to Stg14 per share, trumping the rival cash bid of Stg12.50 per share from Comcast. Fox had initially offered Stg10.75 per share in late 2016, and the revised offer values Sky at Stg24.5bn ($43.8bn). Fox already has a 39 per cent stake in Sky, and it says the target’s independent directors have recommended that shareholders accept the revised offer.

CORPORATES
21ST CENTURY FOX INCORPORATED, SKY PLC, COMCAST CORPORATION, WALT DISNEY COMPANY, NETFLIX INCORPORATED, FACEBOOK INCORPORATED, AMAZON.COM INCORPORATED, GOOGLE INCORPORATED, NEWS CORP AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS

Latest Sky complication upsets Murdoch plans

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Original article by Jennifer Duke
The Sydney Morning Herald – Page: 26 : 1-Mar-18

Rupert Murdoch’s 21st Century Fox had aimed to finalise the acquisition of British pay-TV group Sky by mid-2018. Murdoch would then complete the $US52.4bn ($A65.9bn) deal to sell most of Fox’s assets to Walt Disney Company, including Sky. However, these deals are in doubt in the wake of Comcast’s Stg22.1bn ($A39.4bn) bid for Sky. Comcast’s offer is compelling at Stg12.50 per share, compared with Fox’s offer of just Stg10.75. The Comcast deal is also likely to meet with less resistance from Britain’s competition regulators than Fox’s bid for Sky.

CORPORATES
21ST CENTURY FOX INCORPORATED, SKY PLC, COMCAST CORPORATION, WALT DISNEY COMPANY, NBC UNIVERSAL INCORPORATED, UNIVERSAL PICTURES, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, ODEY ASSET MANAGEMENT LLP, ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE

Comcast takes on Fox, Disney with £22.1 billion bid for Sky

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Original article by Joe Mayes
The Australian Financial Review – Page: Online : 28-Feb-18

US media giant Comcast is offering Stg12.50 per share for British pay-TV company Sky. Sky’s shares peaked at Stg13.55 in response to the Stg22.1bn ($A39.5bn) bid. Rupert Murdoch’s 21st Century Fox had previously offered Stg10.75 per share to assume full ownership of Sky. The Comcast bid also has implications for Walt Disney Company’s deal to acquire the bulk of Fox’s assets, including its stake in Sky. Fox had rejected Comcast’s offer in late 2017 to buy most of its assets for $US60bn in favour of the deal with Disney.

CORPORATES
COMCAST CORPORATION, SKY PLC, 21ST CENTURY FOX INCORPORATED, WALT DISNEY COMPANY, ODEY ASSET MANAGEMENT LLP, NBC UNIVERSAL INCORPORATED, JEFFERIES AND COMPANY, ENDERS ANALYSIS LIMITED

Comcast takes on Fox, Disney with £22.1 billion bid for Sky

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Original article by Joe Mayes
The Australian Financial Review – Page: Online : 28-Feb-18

US media giant Comcast is offering Stg12.50 per share for British pay-TV company Sky. Sky’s shares peaked at Stg13.55 in response to the Stg22.1bn ($A39.5bn) bid. Rupert Murdoch’s 21st Century Fox had previously offered Stg10.75 per share to assume full ownership of Sky. The Comcast bid also has implications for Walt Disney Company’s deal to acquire the bulk of Fox’s assets, including its stake in Sky. Fox had rejected Comcast’s offer in late 2017 to buy most of its assets for $US60bn in favour of the deal with Disney.

CORPORATES
COMCAST CORPORATION, SKY PLC, 21ST CENTURY FOX INCORPORATED, WALT DISNEY COMPANY, ODEY ASSET MANAGEMENT LLP, NBC UNIVERSAL INCORPORATED, JEFFERIES AND COMPANY, ENDERS ANALYSIS LIMITED

Sky’s the limit as Murdoch tries again

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Original article by John Kehoe
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 15 : 12-Dec-16

Rupert Murdoch’s 21st Century Fox has approached UK pay-TV group Sky with a cash offer of Stg10.75 per share. Fox currently has a 39 per cent stake in Sky, and the proposed Stg11.2bn ($A19bn) bid values the target at $A31bn. Fox previously launched a takeover bid in 2011 but was forced to abandon it in the wake of the telephone hacking scandal in the UK. Any deal is likely to attract regulatory scrutiny given that Murdoch’s News Corporation owns several major British newspapers.

CORPORATES
21ST CENTURY FOX INCORPORATED, SKY PLC, NEWS CORP AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, GABELLI AND COMPANY, GREAT BRITAIN. OFFICE OF THE PRIME MINISTER, LABOUR PARTY (GREAT BRITAIN), FOX NEWS, FOXTEL MANAGEMENT PTY LTD, REA GROUP LIMITED – ASX REA, HARPERCOLLINS PUBLISHERS PTY LTD