U-K Paves Way For Comcast's Sky Bid

Britain’s culture secretary said on Monday that he was unlikely to block the American cable giant Comcast’s proposed takeover of the British satellite broadcaster Sky, the latest twist in a merger battle between Comcast and Rupert Murdoch’s 21st Century Fox.

In a statement, the culture secretary, Matt Hancock, said he was not inclined to intervene in Comcast’s $30.7 billion bid for Sky because “the proposed merger does not raise concerns in relation to public interest considerations which would meet the threshold for intervention.”

The NYTimes reportsHancock’s remarks came amid a protracted effort by Fox to win full control of Sky, a company in which Mr. Murdoch’s company already holds a 39 percent stake. Fox submitted its current bid for Sky in December 2016, but the company has faced a series of regulatory roadblocks since then. Mr. Hancock is still considering that bid and is expected to make a final decision about it by sometime in June.

Comcast and Fox are in something of a bidding war for the satellite broadcaster. Under the terms of its offer, Comcast would pay 12.50 pounds, or about $16.83, in cash for each Sky share. Fox has offered £10.75 a share. Sky had originally supported the Fox bid, but in April withdrew that recommendation after the Comcast proposal was submitted.

The competing offers by Fox and Comcast highlight the appeal of Sky, which has 23 million subscribers spread across multiple European countries, owns lucrative rights to broadcast English Premier League soccer games and other professional sports matches and has an online streaming service.