Murdoch Sky bid’s new blow
RUPERT Murdoch’s £11.7billion bid to take full control of satellite broadcaster Sky faces further hurdles after the Culture Secretary said she was “minded to” refer the deal to regulators amid concerns over broadcasting standards.
Karen Bradley had already signalled her intention to refer the proposed takeover to the Competition and Markets Authority on media plurality grounds, but it now faces a two-pronged investigation over six months.
The decision had been delayed to enable Bradley to listen to further arguments, but she told MPs that none of the representations had persuaded her to change her position that the deal could give Murdoch’s family too much control.
His 21st Century Fox already owns 39 per cent of Sky, while his UK newspapers, including the Sun and The Times, are owned through News Corp.
Sky said it was “disappointed by this further delay and that the Secretary of State is now minded to refer the proposed acquisition to the CMA in relation to broadcasting standards despite Ofcom maintaining its advice that there are not sufficient concerns to justify such a reference”. The FTSE 100 company said it would “continue to engage with the process” as Bradley reaches her final decision. Its shares fell 15½p to 937p. Fox echoed the disappointment that Bradley had chosen not to follow “the unequivocal advice of the independent regulator”. It added: “We are surprised that after independent regulatory scrutiny and advice, and over four months to examine the case, the Secretary of State is still unable to form an opinion.” Bradley said the existence of “non-fanciful concerns” about compliance procedures at Fox News and corporate governance at the Murdochs’ companies meant the legal threshold for referring the deal on the broadcasting standards ground had been met. She said: “The fact that Fox belatedly established such procedures does not ease my concerns, nor does Fox’s company history. It is important that entities which adopt controversial or partisan approaches to news and current affairs in other jurisdictions should, at the same time, have a genuine commitment to broadcasting standards here.” Bradley has given parties 10 working days to respond before she makes a final decision in relation to both grounds “as promptly as I can”.