Deal is not happening. But NETFLIX or APPLE should by Fox.
It was mentioned in the article that talks have been off and on for weeks now. It’s dead now but could happen in the future.
“The talks have taken place over the last few weeks and there is no certainty they will lead to a deal. The two sides are not currently talking at this very moment, but given the on again, off again nature of the talks, they could be revisited.”
Edit: more info
21st Century Fox Shares Soar on Report of Disney Sale Talks
Earlier Monday, U.K. regulator Ofcom censured the Fox News operation for violating “impartiality rules” with primetime shows hosted by Tucker Carlson and Sean Hannity. Fox News was pulled off the air in the U.K. in August by Sky, citing its tiny audience. But the rebuke from Ofcom is seen as more evidence that regulators are taking a dim view of Fox’s full-fledged Sky takeover.
CNBC reported that in considering a sale to Disney, the Murdochs believe a smaller operation more focused on news and sports might carve out a more competitive niche.
At present, 21st Century Fox is still a heavyweight industry player but it is dwarfed in size by Comcast-NBCUniversal, Disney, and the pending AT&T-Time Warner union. CNBC reported the Murdochs are concerned that 21st Century Fox is unable to achieve the global scale that traditional media giants need to stay competitive with the tech giants that have been actively diving into content and distribution: Facebook, Apple, Amazon, Netflix, and Google.
For Disney, the acquisition as reported would strengthen its market share in film — which is already considerable thanks to the Marvel, Pixar and Lucasfilm banners — and beef up its TV content production activity. Fox’s film and TV vault would also be a boon to the standalone entertainment streaming service that Disney plans to launch in 2019. Moreover, Fox has a much more significant presence in international TV than Disney through its portfolio of 300-plus channels across Europe, Asia, Latin America, Africa, and the Middle East.
Even if Fox’s Sky acquisition is ultimately nixed, Fox’s existing 39% interest in Sky would bolster Disney’s international TV footprint.