World News | Murdoch Pulls Plug on Possible Merger of News Corp, Fox
Get latest articles and stories on World at LatestLY. Rupert Murdoch has pulled the plug on a proposal to bring back together his News Corp. and Fox Corp., saying the merger isn't coming at the right time for shareholders.
New York, Jan 25 (AP) Rupert Murdoch has pulled the plug on a proposal to bring back together his News Corp. and Fox Corp., saying the merger isn't coming at the right time for shareholders.
In similar statements on Tuesday, the companies said their boards received letters from Murdoch withdrawing the plan.
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“Mr. Murdoch indicated that he and (son and Fox Corp. chief executive) Lachlan K. Murdoch have determined that a combination is not optimal for shareholders of News Corp. and FOX at this time," the statements said.
The elder Murdoch first floated merging News Corp. — which owns The Wall Street Journal, New York Post, The Sun and The Times in the UK, and book publisher HarperCollins — and Fox Corp. that controls Fox News, Fox Sports and local TV stations, in October, according to regulatory filings.
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The media mogul had sent letters to the companies' boards, which formed committees to look into a possible merger.
News Corp. started as one company but split into two in 2013: 21st Century Fox with the entertainment assets and News Corp. with publishing and media assets, including The Wall Street Journal and HarperCollins.
The Murdoch family controls both corporations but had spun off the Fox properties into a separate company after selling a large part of the Fox entertainment empire to Walt Disney Co. for USD 71 billion in a deal that closed in 2019.
In premarket trading, News Corp. shares added 1.8 per cent while Fox shares rose 3.9 per cent. (AP)
(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)