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| Government clears way for Fox's Sky bid | |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| The UK government will let 21st Century Fox take over Sky if it sells Sky News. | The UK government will let 21st Century Fox take over Sky if it sells Sky News. |
| Culture Secretary Matt Hancock has referred Fox's bid for a further consultation, but has also cleared Comcast's rival bid to take over Sky. | |
| The decision paves the way for a bidding war worth billions of dollars between Comcast and Fox to complete a takeover of Sky. | |
| Fox has been chasing approval from UK regulators since 2016 to buy the 61% of Sky it does not already own. | Fox has been chasing approval from UK regulators since 2016 to buy the 61% of Sky it does not already own. |
| The takeover was held up by politicians and regulators who feared it could give Rupert Murdoch too much influence over the media in the UK. | The takeover was held up by politicians and regulators who feared it could give Rupert Murdoch too much influence over the media in the UK. |
| The Murdoch-controlled Fox has been attempting to address those concerns through a series of concessions, including selling Sky News to Disney once the deal is complete. | The Murdoch-controlled Fox has been attempting to address those concerns through a series of concessions, including selling Sky News to Disney once the deal is complete. |
| Separately, Disney has struck a deal to buy Fox's entertainment assets, including its stake in Sky. | Separately, Disney has struck a deal to buy Fox's entertainment assets, including its stake in Sky. |
| However, US media giant Comcast waded into the bidding in February with a £22bn offer for Sky, trumping Fox's offer, which valued the broadcaster at £18.5bn. | However, US media giant Comcast waded into the bidding in February with a £22bn offer for Sky, trumping Fox's offer, which valued the broadcaster at £18.5bn. |
| Mr Hancock said he needed to be confident that the final undertakings ensured the continuation of Sky News's long-term financial viability, and that it could continue to operate as a major UK-based news provider making independent editorial decisions. | |
| "As a result, I have asked my officials to begin immediate discussions with the parties to finalise the details with a view to agreeing an acceptable form of the remedy, so we can all be confident Sky News can be divested in a way that works for the long-term," he said. | |
| "I am optimistic that we can achieve this goal, not least given the willingness 21st Century Fox has shown in developing these credible proposals. | |
| "However, if we can't agree terms at this point, then I agree with the CMA that the only effective remedy now would be to block the merger altogether. This is not my preferred approach." | |
| 'Good starting point' | |
| Fox said: "We now look forward to engaging with the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) and we are confident that we will reach a final decision clearing our transaction." | |
| In a statement, Sky said it welcomed the announcement and it noted that Mr Hancock felt that undertakings provided by Fox were a "good starting point to overcome the adverse public interest, effects of the proposed merger that he has identified". | |
| Shadow culture secretary Tom Watson said that the approval of both bids "means that this is not the end of the story". | |
| He said Labour's priority going forward was to "safeguard the future of Sky News" which is a "beacon for independent and rigorous journalism". | |
| "Were the Fox/Disney deal to fail it could leave Sky News isolated from Sky and owned by a foreign company with few news interests in the UK. It's hard to see how that would be in the public interest," he said.. |