21st Century Fox buys out Sky in USD 14.8-bn deal

21st Century Fox buys out Sky in USD 14.8-bn deal

Rupert Murdoch

MUMBAI: 21st Century Fox has stated that Sky had agreed to a takeover offer worth USD 14.8 billion as the media tycoon Rupert Murdoch attempts to create a global media giant stretch across the U.K., U.S, and Europe.

21st Century Fox is one of the world's largest entertainment companies, with a broad portfolio of broadcast, cable, pay TV, film, and satellite assets across six continents.

Fox group said in a statement that it had reached an agreement with Sky plc on the terms of a recommended pre-conditional cash offer to buy the rest of the European pay broadcaster, beyond the 39 per cent it already owns. The deal is worth USD 14.8 billion (Rs 1004 billion) in total for the cash purchase, the statement said. The terms of the formal offer, Sky News stated, would mean Fox paying 10.75 pounds per Sky share, for the remainder 61% of Sky.

The new deal will create an improved balance between affiliate fee, subscription, advertising and content revenues.

Fox' cable and broadcasting properties include include STAR India, Fox News Channel, Fox Business Network, FOX, National Geographic Channels, 28 television stations in the U.S and over 300 international channels.