Well, the acquisition of 20th Century Fox isn’t a done deal just yet. Earlier this year, Disney had an all-stock offer of $52.4bn accepted for Fox’s assets, including its film and TV properties. Whilst much of the attention was on Disney getting access to Marvel characters it currently doesn’t have the screen rights too, for The Mouse, the bigger fish is Fox’s share of Hulu, and Sky Television. The ability to get its output direct to people’s screens.
However, since the bid was accepted, Comcast has become a noisy competitor, offering a higher price for Fox. And now, according to a new report, it’s upped the ante again.
It’s now been revealed that it’s set to outbid Disney, and – perhaps crucially – fund its purchase in cash rather than stock. Whilst Disney has accepted the Fox deal in principle, this may yet put a spanner in the proverbial works.
D-day for this particular transaction comes in the summer, when Disney and Fox shareholders have to vote on whether the acquisition is the right way forward for them both. This one ain’t done yet, it seems…