Britain delays Sky takeover, but Murdoch ‘fit and proper’
Rupert Murdoch may have to wait another six months to find out whether his long quest to buy Sky will become a reality after British authorities Thursday asked regulators to further examine 21st Century Fox’s deal for the European satellite giant.
The announcement was part of a split decision on 21st Century Fox’s $15 billion deal to take over the remainder of Sky that it does not already own. The government also ruled that Murdoch and other company executives were “fit and proper” to hold broadcasting licenses in Britain.
Murdoch, who is executive chairman of 21st Century Fox, has long tried to cement his legacy by adding Sky to his company’s stable of global media assets. The media mogul hopes to use Sky’s satellite network and online streaming business to keep pace in a world where more consumers watch programming on their mobile devices.
By recommending that Britain’s competition authority carry out a further lengthy, and potentially intrusive, review over what impact the deal would have on Britain’s media landscape, the government has put increased pressure on Murdoch and his family.
Karen Bradley, the culture minister, said Thursday that an investigation into the proposed deal had raised questions about whether the takeover would give members of the Murdoch family too much influence.
“The transaction may increase members of the Murdoch Family Trust’s ability to influence the overall news agenda and their ability to influence the political process,” she said in a statement.
But officials also ruled that 21st Century Fox executives would be “fit and proper” to hold broadcasting licenses. That removes uncertainty for the media conglomerate as it looks to end a lengthy sexual harassment scandal at Fox News in the United States.
The company welcomed the British regulator’s “fit and proper” decision but said it was disappointed the government still had reservations about its potential control of the local media industry. It added that its takeover of Sky may now happen by June 2018.
The company has until July 14 to respond before the government formally refers the deal to Britain’s competition authority.
In its ruling, the Office of Communications found that the scandals at Fox News had been extremely serious and disturbing, according to its report published Thursday.
But despite scolding 21st Century Fox, the office passed the company as a “fit and proper” holder of British broadcasting rights. The British regulator added that it had found no evidence that the issues at Fox News had extended through 21st Century Fox, nor that any of the company’s executives were aware of the misconduct before they were informed of it in July 2016.
One lawyer for some of the accusers rejected these claims, saying that 21st Century Fox executives had known about the harassment before that date.