Comcast’s £22bn bid to trump Rupert Murdoch in the battle to take control of Sky has been given a boost after the culture secretary said he was unlikely to call for an investigation by the media regulator.
Matt Hancock, who has 10 working days to make a final decision on referring the deal to Ofcom, said: “Having reviewed the relevant evidence available, I can confirm that I have today written to the parties to inform them that I am minded not to issue an [intervention notice] on the basis that the proposed merger does not raise concerns in relation to public interest considerations which would meet the threshold for intervention.
“This is a quasi-judicial decision and I am required to make my decision independently, following a process that is scrupulously fair and impartial, and as quickly as possible.”
The move is a filip for Comcast, the US pay-TV company that owns assets including NBC Universal. It had said it expected to be free of the regulatory scrutiny that has mired rival Murdoch’s bid for Sky for almost 18 months.
If asked, Ofcom could carry out a public interest test on the deal and report back within 40 days. If Hancock decides there are no concerns, he must clear the bid.
Critics of Comcast have argued that a number of corporate transgressions over the years means the company should be subject to the same scrutiny as Murdoch’s Fox.
In recent years, Comcast has been fined more than $2m (£1.5m) by US regulators and was forced to relocate a rival news service nearer to its news channels on its TV guide.
In November, NBC News host Matt Lauer, one of the best-paid TV presenters in the US, was fired after a colleague complained about inappropriate sexual behaviour.
Comcast is the biggest cable company in the US and one of the world’s largest TV, film and entertainment businesses
Revenue (2017): $84.5bn
Profit (2017): $22.7bn
Market capitalisation (26 February 2018): $183.8bn
Employees (December 2017): 164,000
Subsidiaries
Xfinity
US cable business offering TV, broadband, wifi and phone services
Revenue (2017): $52.5bn
Customers (December 2017): 29.3 million – 27.2 million domestic, 2.2 million business
NBC Universal
TV, film and entertainment
Revenue (2017): $28.5bn
NBC
Oldest major US TV network, began broadcasting in 1926. Shows include Saturday Night Live, The Voice, This Is Us and The Good Place.
Cable channels
Include news services MSNBC and CNBC, The Weather Channel (joint venture), Syfy and E!.
Streaming
NBC Universal owns 30% of US on demand TV service Hulu
Universal Pictures
Hollywood studio founded in 1912. Titles include Jurassic World and the Fast and the Furious, Despicable Me and Fifty Shades franchises. Subsidiaries include Focus Features, the indie producer/distributor involved in recent releases including Atomic Blonde; and Working Title, the UK company behind Four Weddings and a Funeral, Baby Driver and Darkest Hour.
NBC Universal International
Production, distribution and channels business outside US. UK subsidiaries include Downton Abbey, The Hollow Crown and The Last Kingdom producer Carnival Films and Monkey, the company behind Made in Chelsea.
Universal Parks & Resorts
Operates theme parks in Los Angeles, Orlando, Japan and Singapore.
In 2016, Comcast paid a $2.3m fine to resolve a federal investigation into allegations that it added charges to customers’ bills for unordered services, including premium channels, set-top boxes and digital video recorders.
Comcast, which has 1,300 employees in the UK in subsidiaries including the production company behind Downton Abbey, has made a number of pledges such as keeping Sky’s HQ in Osterley, south-west London, and guaranteeing the editorial independence and funding of Sky News for at least 10 years.
The company also said it would not try to acquire a majority interest in any UK newspaper for at least five years – a shot at Murdoch, owner of the Sun and the Times, whose takeover bid is being scrutinised amid concerns that taking over Sky News would give him too much control of UK news media.
The Competition and Markets Authority is to deliver its verdict on whether to clear Murdoch’s takeover bid to Hancock by the end of the month. The culture secretary has until 13 June to then make his final decision.
If he gives Murdoch the green light, the media mogul will have to significantly increase his bid for the 61% of Sky he does not own, which values the business at about £19bn, well short of Comcast’s £22bn offer.
