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Disney ups its Fox bid to $71.3 billion in response to Comcast offer

Disney ups its Fox bid to $71.3 billion in response to Comcast offer

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Begun, the bidding wars have

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Disney has officially upped its offer for the purchase of 21st Century Fox. It’s now offering to purchase the entertainment giant’s film and TV assets at a price of $38 per share, or roughly $71.3 billion, which is a drastic increase from the company’s original $52.4 billion deal that valued Fox at $28 per share.

It’s a direct counter to Comcast, which tried to swoop in earlier this month with a $65 billion, all-cash offer to top Disney’s original bid by offering $35 per share. In addition to the increased price, Disney’s new offer allows 21st Century Fox stockholders to choose to receive their chunk of the sale in the form of either cash or Disney stock now (subject to 50/50 proration), which may undercut the all-cash appeal of Comcast’s offer.

Fox’s board of directors was originally scheduled to vote on the Disney deal on July 10th, but the company has announced that it will be postponing that meeting to an as yet unannounced future date to give shareholders the chance to consider Disney’s upped bid. This will also presumably offer Comcast a chance to decide whether or not it wants to up the ante in what could be an extended bidding war for 21st Century Fox’s assets.

Whoever ends up with 21st Century Fox will gain control of a huge chunk of the entertainment industry. Up for grabs is Twentieth Century Fox Television and Twentieth Century Fox, Fox Searchlight Pictures, and Fox 2000 film production studios, augmenting either Disney’s massive media portfolio or Comcast’s NBCUniversal with tons of new TV shows and movies, as well as a controlling share in Hulu. Not included in the sale is Fox News and Fox Sports, which would remain under the control of a “New Fox,” as would the publicly broadcast over-the-air Fox channels. (Disney already owns ABC, and Comcast owns NBC.)

As of now, it would seem that the momentum is back in Disney’s court, at least according to a statement from Rupert Murdoch, executive chairman of 21st Century Fox. “We are extremely proud of the businesses we have built at 21st Century Fox, and firmly believe that this combination with Disney will unlock even more value for shareholders as the new Disney continues to set the pace at a dynamic time for our industry,” said Murdock. “We remain convinced that the combination of 21CF‘s iconic assets, brands and franchises with Disney‘s will create one of the greatest, most innovative companies in the world.“

Disclosure: Comcast is an investor in Vox Media, The Verge’s parent company.