Brussels: The European Commission yesterday cleared the multi-billion dollar buyout of European pay-TV giant Sky by 21st Century Fox without conditions as the tie-up does not harm competition.
“Based on the results of its market investigation, the Commission concluded that the proposed transaction would raise no competition concerns,” it said.
Media tycoon Rupert Murdoch’s Fox said in December it had reached an agreement to buy the 61 per cent stake in Sky it did not already own in a deal worth £11.7 billion ($14bn). The tie-up stirred fears, however, that the Murdoch family would gain too much control over Britain’s media and the government announced its own probe last month.
Fox is one of the world’s largest entertainment companies with a vast portfolio of cable, broadcast, film, pay-TV and satellite assets across six continents.
Sky broadcasts the 24-hour Sky News channel, blockbuster movies and live English Premier League football, and also provides Internet and telephone services.
Murdoch first tried to gain full control of Sky in 2011 but was forced to abandon the attempt as controversy raged over the hacking of the telephones of celebrities and crime victims by his tabloid the News of the World, which was subsequently shut down.
The European Commission said it believed the new company would leave room for competitors, noting that Fox and Sky were active in different markets.