Sky is Comcast’s final prize
london — After raising the white flag in the battle with Walt Disney Co for the bulk of Rupert Murdoch’s media empire, Comcast Corp chief executive officer Brian Roberts has one last prize to fight for: the British payTV company Sky.
Comcast currently has the upper hand in the race for Sky, with an offer of £26 billion ($34 billion) that’s six per cent higher than a rival, Disneybacked bid by Murdoch’s 21st Century Fox, which already owns 39 per cent of the company. But as Disney CEO Bob Iger weighs whether to continue the bidding war for Sky and seek full ownership, here’s why Roberts is so keen on the asset:
Global scale
Buying Sky would give Comcast international scale, a hedge against the erosion of cable-TV viewing in the US and a larger palette to compete with streaming services like Amazon.com and Netflix Sky has 22.5 million customers across five European countries — a continent where pay-TV trends have been more stable — and is pushing into Spain and Switzerland.
Comcast would generate 25 per cent of its sales outside of the US if it buys Sky, compared with nine per cent currently.
Technology
Sky would give Comcast a hightech set-top box, called Sky Q. It has an easy-to-navigate interface for viewers and allows voice-activated search for shows. Comcast would also get Now TV, Sky’s streaming service, which is pitched at consumers who don’t want to pay for a full-fat TV bundle. When Comcast first announced its approach for Sky in February, Roberts said an in-store demo of their products and technology left him “terribly impressed.” —