Sky has around 22 million subscribers throughout the U.K., Austria, Ireland, Germany and Italy. Once Murdoch officially owns Sky, he will have a delivery platform for his Fox TV network and for his 20th Century Fox movie studio.
21st Century Fox released a statement saying the deal creates a global leader in content creation and distribution. The statement continued to say that the deal enhances the company’s sports and entertainment scale, as well as giving them leading direct-to-consumer capabilities and technologies. Sky’s headquarters will remain in London, as part of the deal.
The Culture Secretary, Karen Bradley, has a little over a week to decide whether the deal raises public interest concerns. If she wants, she can ask the media watchdog, Ofcom, to examine the deal.
Tom Watson, the shadow culture secretary, urged Bradley to ask Ofcom to examine the deal. He said this was a big call and the government must decide whose side it’s on.
Rupert Murdoch’s media empire already owns 39 percent of Sky. In 2010, the company tried to buy Sky’s remaining shares, but then some of their tabloids became involved in a phone hacking scandal.
The deal could not have come at a better time. The pound has been weakened by Brexit, which means it has become cheaper for Fox to acquire it.
