bassethound
25-02-11, 13:29
Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation is reportedly close to agreeing a deal with UK regulators addressing concerns about its £13.2 billion bid to acquire the 60.9% of Sky that it does not already own.
Citing people "familiar with the process", today's Financial Times reports that Murdoch is getting significantly closer to satisfying media plurality objections about the takeover after a series of talks with merger watchdog, the Office of Fair Trading.
Exact details of News Corp's proposed remedy are not yet known, but there could be an announcement made as early as next week. Two people close to the talks said that the solution was "structural" rather than "behavioural", suggesting the divestment of a major asset such as rolling news channel Sky News.
Opponents of the takeover have expressed concern that a combined News Corp-Sky would control the UK's largest pay-TV broadcaster and its biggest newspaper group, vastly reducing the diversity of voices in news provision.
Should a positive verdict from the OFT be approved by Jeremy Hunt, the UK culture secretary responsible for arbitrating over the takeover, it would then be put out for a 15-day consultation.
Barring any major objections changing Hunt's mind, News Corp would have successfully avoided a lengthy investigation of the takeover at the Competition Commission.
Hunt said last month that he was minded to refer News Corp's bid to take full control of Sky to the commission. However, he decided to give the company more time to come up with alternate proposals to address the concerns.
Murdoch's media group is sufficiently keen to avoid a Competition Commission probe that it is willing to sacrifice control of Sky News, the 24-hour news network this week named 'RTS News Channel Of The Year'.
"They want this to happen as soon as possible," one source said.
Last June, News Corp offered 700 pence per share for the 60.9% of Sky that it does not already own, but that was rejected by the satellite broadcaster's independent directors, who are holding out for at least 800p per share.
Murdoch has remained busy on the acquisitions front in the meantime with a £415m deal to buy Shine Group, the film and television production company majority owned by his daughter Elisabeth
Citing people "familiar with the process", today's Financial Times reports that Murdoch is getting significantly closer to satisfying media plurality objections about the takeover after a series of talks with merger watchdog, the Office of Fair Trading.
Exact details of News Corp's proposed remedy are not yet known, but there could be an announcement made as early as next week. Two people close to the talks said that the solution was "structural" rather than "behavioural", suggesting the divestment of a major asset such as rolling news channel Sky News.
Opponents of the takeover have expressed concern that a combined News Corp-Sky would control the UK's largest pay-TV broadcaster and its biggest newspaper group, vastly reducing the diversity of voices in news provision.
Should a positive verdict from the OFT be approved by Jeremy Hunt, the UK culture secretary responsible for arbitrating over the takeover, it would then be put out for a 15-day consultation.
Barring any major objections changing Hunt's mind, News Corp would have successfully avoided a lengthy investigation of the takeover at the Competition Commission.
Hunt said last month that he was minded to refer News Corp's bid to take full control of Sky to the commission. However, he decided to give the company more time to come up with alternate proposals to address the concerns.
Murdoch's media group is sufficiently keen to avoid a Competition Commission probe that it is willing to sacrifice control of Sky News, the 24-hour news network this week named 'RTS News Channel Of The Year'.
"They want this to happen as soon as possible," one source said.
Last June, News Corp offered 700 pence per share for the 60.9% of Sky that it does not already own, but that was rejected by the satellite broadcaster's independent directors, who are holding out for at least 800p per share.
Murdoch has remained busy on the acquisitions front in the meantime with a £415m deal to buy Shine Group, the film and television production company majority owned by his daughter Elisabeth