Comcast Makes $65 Billion All-Cash Bid for Fox, Tops Disney's Offer
Comcast has announced it is offering $65 billion in cash for 21st Century Fox's entertain businesses on Wednesday, topping the Walt Disney Company's bid for Rupert Murdoch's media empire.
It sets up a battle between two major conglomerates for the assets of another major conglomerate ... basically, "Game of Thrones" but with houses worth billions of dollars. At stake are the 20th Century Fox film and TV studios, almost two dozen regional sports networks, cable networks including FX, and 30 percent ownership in Hulu.
In December, Disney signed a $52.4 billion, all-stock deal for Fox's assets. Comcast, which owns NBC Universal, then made a $60 billion offer that was rejected.
Their new offer is about 19 percent higher than Disney's proposal, according to its statement. Comcast waited to make their second bid a day after a federal judge approved a merger between AT&T and Time Warner.
Fox shareholders are scheduled to vote on the Disney deal on July 10, unless Murdoch and the board decide to support Comcast's bid. Disney would then have five days to respond with a counter bid.