21st Century Fox’s takeover is not in the public interest

Media mogul Rupert Murdoch was dealt a blow today when Britain’s competition regulator ruled his plans to take control of Sky were not in the public interest.

Murdoch’s company Fox wanted to up its share of Sky by buying the 61% of the company it did not already own.

But the deal – originally agreed more than a year ago – attracted the attention of regulators, who looked into whether it would give Murdoch too much influence in the UK.

The Competition and Markets Authority said today that if the takeover went ahead it was ‘likely to operate against the public interest’.

Their ruling could be made less relevant however if Fox is sold to Disney in a separate £49billion deal announced last month. 

Britain’s competition regulator said 21st Century Fox’s takeover of Sky is not in the public interest because it would give Rupert Murdoch (pictured) too much influence

In a statement, the authority said: ‘The (Murdoch family trust’s) news outlets are watched, read or heard by nearly a third of the UK’s population, and have a combined share of the public’s news consumption that is significantly greater than all other news providers, except the BBC and ITN.

‘Due to its control of News Corp., the Murdoch family already has significant influence over public opinion and full ownership of Sky by Fox would strengthen this even further.’ 

While it found a genuine commitment to meeting broadcasting standards in the UK, its concerns over the impact on media plurality meant that overall it believed the deal was not in the public interest.

It instead set out possible remedies to allow the deal to go ahead which included spinning off or divesting Sky News, or insulating Sky News from Fox’s influence.

But its findings come as Sky is set for a new owner, after Walt Disney agreed a £39billion deal to buy Fox’s entertainment assets.

Murdoch's 21st Century Fox agreed to buy the 61 percent of Sky it did not already own in December 2016

Murdoch’s 21st Century Fox agreed to buy the 61 percent of Sky it did not already own in December 2016

Anne Lambert, chairwoman of the CMA’s independent investigation group, said: ‘Media plurality goes to the heart of our democratic process.

‘It is very important that no group or individual should have too much control of our news media or too much power to affect the political agenda.

‘We have provisionally found that if the Fox/Sky merger went ahead as proposed, it would be against the public interest. 

‘It would result in the Murdoch family having too much control over news providers in the UK, and too much influence over public opinion and the political agenda.’ 

Murdoch and his son Lachlan have run 21st Century Fox, but the company is now set to be sold to Disney

Murdoch and his son Lachlan have run 21st Century Fox, but the company is now set to be sold to Disney

Ofcom has responded to the CMA’s findings on the deal, saying: ‘The CMA has carried out an in-depth, second-stage review, which has provisionally reached the same conclusions as Ofcom’s advice.’ 

The watchdog has extended the deadline for its final report to May 1 2018, in part due to the ‘exceptional volume’ of submissions over the deal.

Ms Lambert added: ‘In taking this decision, the inquiry group had regard to the exceptional volume of substantive submissions, the need to hold a large number of hearings and the novelty and complexity of the investigation required to address the statutory questions the inquiry group is required to report on.

‘The inquiry group considers that these amount to special reasons that mean that its final report cannot be prepared and given to the Secretary of State within the original reference period.’ 

21st Century Fox said that while it welcomed the CMA’s findings over its commitment to broadcasting standards, the same could not be said for the media plurality concerns.

It said: ‘Regarding plurality, we are disappointed by the CMA’s provisional findings. We will continue to engage with the CMA ahead of the publication of the final report in May.’

The broadcaster said it still expects to be given the green light by regulators.

‘We also note that the CMA has elected to avail itself of the statutory eight-week extension, moving its deadline for a final decision to May 1 2018.

‘We anticipate regulatory approval of the transaction by June 30 2018,’ it said.

Sky shares rose more than 2 per cent after the CMA’s provisional findings.



Read more at DailyMail.co.uk