appConfigEntityId

bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

isVideo

articlePageQuery

article

articleSchemaContent

content

hooksArticlePageAdvertisementConfigArticle

hooksArticlePageFloatingButtonConfigArticle

appConfig

filter

json

liveArticle

Associated Press

Comcast has emerged as the top bidder for European broadcaster Sky after a rare auction held by British regulators.
After three rounds of secret bidding on Friday and Saturday, Comcast offered the higher price of £17.28 (US$22.58) per share for Sky, the equivalent of nearly £30 billion (US$39 billion). Rival 21st Century Fox offered £15.67 (US20.47) per share.
Sky shareholders must now decide whether to sell their shares to Comcast. Comcast said it hoped to complete the sale by the end of October.

“Sky is a wonderful company with a great platform, tremendous brand and accomplished management team,” Comcast Chairman and CEO Brian Roberts said in a statement. “This acquisition will allow us to quickly, efficiently and meaningfully increase our customer base and expand internationally.”
Britain’s regulator, the Takeover Panel, set up the auction to reduce uncertainty for Sky after months of offers and counter-offers from the American media giants. Sky is Europe’s largest pay-television operator, with 22.5 million customers in seven countries and popular programming including English Premier League soccer and Game of Thrones.

Fox owns 39 per cent of Sky. It now must decide whether to sell its stake or remain a minority shareholder.
Fox had long been trying to acquire the 61 per cent of Sky it does not already own. Fox founder Rupert Murdoch’s last bid sank amid a 2011 phone-hacking scandal, in which journalists working for Murdoch newspapers were accused of gaining illegal access to the voicemail messages of crime victims, celebrities and members of the royal family.
Fox shareholders approve Disney’s US$71 billion deal
A bidding war emerged last December, when Comcast made an offer for Fox’s entertainment assets, which Walt Disney is in the process of buying for about US$71 billion.
Comcast eventually dropped out of that contest to focus on its acquisition of Sky.
British regulators organised the auction in part to ensure that Sky’s value did not erode during the long bidding process. The last time such an auction took place was in 2007, when Tata beat out CSN to buy Britain’s Corus, creating what at the time was one of the world’s top five steelmakers.


Venice 2026: Ink movie review – Danny Boyle charts the gritty birth of The Sun newspaper

Horoscopes: what does July 2026, Wood Goat month, hold for your sign? Health, career and wealth predictions

ITV and Comcast’s Sky reshape British TV landscape with US$2.1 billion deal

Fox to buy Roku for US$22 billion to fuel streaming push

Rupert Murdoch

Comcast beats Fox in Sky auction with US$39B bid

Comcast has emerged The victor in a tense bidding war over European broadcaster Sky against 21st century Fox. Photo: AP

epa07039930 (FILE) - A logo at Sky Broadcasting headquarters in Osterley, west London, Britain, 06 August 2018 (reissued 22 September 2018). According to reports, US broadcaster Comcast won an auction against 21st Century Fox to take over Sky, a deal that is considered to be worth some 30 billion British pounds (approx 39 billion USD). EPA-EFE/ANDY RAIN *** Local Caption *** 54533805

(FILES) In this file photo taken on July 13, 2017 (L to R) Rupert Murdoch, executive chairman of News Corp and chairman of Fox News, and Lachlan Murdoch, co-chairman of 21st Century Fox, walk together as they arrive on the third day of the annual Allen & Company Sun Valley Conference in Sun Valley, Idaho. - Entertainment group 21st Century Fox announced September 5, 2018 that it has invested $100 million in video game streaming startup Caffeine.Launched this year by former Apple employees and engineers, Caffeine plans to merge live video gaming, entertainment with social media.Like YouTube, Caffeine allows users to monetize their content on the platform.Lachlan Murdoch, the executive chairman of 21st Century Fox, joined the board of Caffeine as part of the deal."We are excited to partner with Caffeine and build something special for fans in the growing live social streaming esports and gaming space," Murdoch said. (Photo by Drew Angerer / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / AFP)

Disney triumphs in battle for Fox properties as Comcast drops out of bidding

Bob Iger, CEO and chairman of the Walt Disney Company, and Mickey Mouse ring the bell at the New York Stock Exchange in November 2017. Photo: Getty Images

This handout image shows a still of Ryan Reynolds, Stefan Kapicic and Brianna Hildebrand in Deadpool (2016). Photo / HANDOUT [21FEBRUARY2016 FEATURES FILM ONLINE]

SUN VALLEY, ID - JULY 10: Rupert Murdoch, chairman of News Corp and co-chairman of 21st Century Fox, arrives at the Sun Valley Resort of the annual Allen & Company Sun Valley Conference, July 10, 2018 in Sun Valley, Idaho. Every July, some of the world's most wealthy and powerful businesspeople from the media, finance, technology and political spheres converge at the Sun Valley Resort for the exclusive weeklong conference. Drew Angerer/Getty Images/AFP == FOR NEWSPAPERS, INTERNET, TELCOS & TELEVISION USE ONLY ==

Slinky Dog Dash, a family-friendly roller coaster, covers Andy's backyard at Toy Story Land. (Disney Parks)

Brian Roberts, chairman and chief executive officer of Comcast Corp., walks the grounds after a morning session at the Allen & Co. Media and Technology Conference in Sun Valley, Idaho, U.S., on Thursday, July 12, 2018. The 35th annual Allen & Co. conference gathers many of America's wealthiest and most powerful people in media, technology, and sports. Photographer: David Paul Morris/Bloomberg

(FILES) In this file photo taken on March 17, 2017 a Sky logo is pictured on a sign next to the entrance to pay-TV giant Sky Plc's headquarters in Isleworth, west London. Cable and media giant Comcast said on July 19, 2018, it is pulling out of the bidding war with Walt Disney Co. for film and television operations of Rupert Murdoch's 21st Century Fox. Comcast said in a statement it would instead focus on acquiring the European pay TV operator Sky, shifting its stand on how it approaches the latest round of consolidation in the media-entertainment sector. / AFP PHOTO / Daniel LEAL-OLIVAS

Fox shareholders approve Walt Disney’s US$71 billion deal

Fox will separate its broadcasting network and stations into a newly listed company that it will spin off to its shareholders. Photo: AP

This image released by Fox shows animated characters, from left, Bart, Homer, Maggie, Marge and Lisa from "The Simpsons," which will premiere its 30th season this fall. (Fox via AP)

News

World

Europe

After three rounds of secret bidding, Comcast offered the higher price of £17.28 (US$22.58) per share for Sky, the equivalent of nearly £30 billion (US$39 billion)


After three rounds of secret bidding on Friday and Saturday, Comcast offered the higher price of nearly US$39 billion


21st Century Fox

Comcast beats Fox in Sky auction with US$39B bid

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}After three rounds of secret bidding, Comcast offered the higher price of £17.28 (US$22.58) per share for Sky, the equivalent of nearly £30 billion (US$39 billion)

After three rounds of secret bidding, Comcast offered the higher price of £17.28 (US$22.58) per share for Sky, the equivalent of nearly £30 billion (US$39 billion)