Disney Will Be Forced To Acquire All Of Sky If Foxs Takeover Of UK Pay Net Is Not Complete

[Blue_Adept]

Disney will be forced to acquire all of Sky if 21st Century Fox’s takeover of the UK pay-TV broadcaster is not complete prior to the Mouse House’s takeover of the rival Hollywood studio.

The UK’s Panel on Takeovers and Mergers made the ruling on Thursday morning and the three companies have accepted it.

Disney will have 28 days from the completion of its $66B acquisition of Fox to make a £10.25 ($US15) offer for all the shares of Sky if Fox’s own $15.7B takeover of Sky is not complete by then or if Comcast’s rival offer has not been accepted. It also posits that this would not be required if another third party has acquired 50% of Sky by then.

http://deadline.com/2018/04/disney-will-be-forced-to-acquire-all-of-sky-if-foxs-takeover-of-uk-pay-net-is-not-complete-before-mega-deal-1202362838/

[Angry Dragon]

1. Confusing

[Gidney N Cloyd]

2. Glad I'm not alone.

[Angry Dragon]

3. They say you are never alone.............

[muriel_volestrangler]

4. Better explained by Sky News itself, I think:

It means that even if Fox's plans to take over Sky are blocked as a result of an investigation by competition regulators, Disney would still have to offer Sky's shareholders a deal at the same price of 1075p per share.

The decision from the Takeover Panel, which applies City rules on takeovers and mergers under a code designed to ensure shareholders are treated fairly, disagreed with Disney's argument that it should not have to do so.
...
Fox, which already holds a 39.1% stake in Sky, agreed at the end of 2016 to buy the remainder of the company in a deal valuing it at £18.5bn.

The CMA provisionally ruled in January that the takeover "may be expected" to act against the public interest because it would concentrate too much influence over the UK media industry in the hands of the Murdoch Family Trust (MFT).

https://news.sky.com/story/disney-must-offer-to-buy-all-of-sky-even-if-fox-plans-blocked-takeover-panel-rules-11327499