Walt Disney Co. won U.S. antitrust approval for its $71 billion purchase of 21st Century Fox Inc.’s entertainment assets, raising hurdles for a potential rival bid from Comcast Corp.
Disney agreed to sell Fox’s 22 regional sports networks to resolve the Justice Department’s concerns that the deal would raise prices for cable sports programming in local markets, the department said Wednesday.
The approval is a victory for Disney in its battle with Comcast for one of the media industry’s biggest prizes. Fox last week accepted a sweetened bid from Disney, which increased its offer following Comcast’s competing $65 billion bid. The $38-a-share price is about $10 a share higher than what Disney offered in December — and $3 above Comcast’s bid.
According to Philly.com, Comcast still has time to respond. Fox canceled a shareholder meeting to vote on the Disney deal that had been planned for July 10. Comcast is now mulling its next steps, including possibly teaming up with private-equity investors in its pursuit of Fox assets, a person familiar with the situation said Wednesday. Wall Street expects the cable giant to come back with a counterbid.
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