Could James Murdoch's new role at Sky foreshadow sale to Fox?
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Corey Fedde Staff
Four years after his resignation, James Murdoch will return to UK subscription broadcaster Sky as chairman of the board.
Sky announced Friday that current chairman 聽from the company board in April.聽
Mr. Murdoch had been chief executive officer of Sky for four years and chairman for five, but was forced to resign in 2011 after a phone-hacking scandal shook the News of the World newspaper, which was owned by the Murdoch family.聽
Murdoch returns to Sky as it enters into another prosperous business year, spurred by acquisitions in Germany, Italy, Austria, and Ireland that have turned the company into a pan-European broadcasting giant. His newly reaffirmed position at the head of the company indicated a future sale to 21蝉迟听颁别苍迟耻谤测 Fox.
鈥淎s an investor in 21st Century Fox as well, we always consider it a real possibility for ,"聽Jeff Li, co-fund manager at EFG Asset Management, told Reuters.
Ties between James Murdoch and 21蝉迟听颁别苍迟耻谤测 Fox, the global media company owned by his father, run deep.
In 2011, with James Murdoch in control of Sky, Fox offered an , according to The Guardian. The deal fell apart after Mr. Murdoch resigned from Sky and several of the Murdoch newspaper assets were shaken by the phone-hacking scandal.
After his resignation, 21蝉迟听颁别苍迟耻谤测 Fox was instrumental in Murdoch鈥檚 corporate rehabilitation. Murdoch left Britain, where his name was associated with the scandal, and worked in New York. In 2015, Murdoch was named chief executive of the global media company.聽
During his tenure as chief executive of Fox, James Murdoch himself predicted the company聽would take a controlling portion of Sky News. Following the sale of Fox assets in Germany and Italy to Sky, Murdoch stated:
That integration is going really well. The company is moving at a very fast pace and has grown in value enormously. We鈥檝e also been clear that over time, having 40 percent of an unconsolidated asset is not an end state that is natural for us.
21蝉迟听颁别苍迟耻谤测 , according to MarketWatch.
With a takeover from Fox seemingly inevitable, the decision to place James Murdoch back on the Sky board has prompted mixed feelings from investors.聽
Ashely Hamilton Claxton, corporate governance manager of RLAM, who has shares in Sky, told Reuters, "Should Fox make a bid for Sky, investors need a strong independent chairman to protect the interests of minority shareholders and negotiate the best possible deal.鈥澛�
On the other end, Mr. Li, from EFG Asset Management, explained to Reuters that James Murdoch has the desired amount of experience and shareholders are likely to welcome his return.
The Board of Sky appears to agree with Li. James Murdoch was the only candidate suggested to take over after Ferguson steps down and .
Sky beat analysts expectations for operating profit by 拢20 million over the last six months, in line with a 12 percent year-over-year increase. Revenue has risen 5 percent and the broadcasting company has gained over 337,000 new customers, according MarketWatch.聽
"James' deep knowledge of the international media industry and his passion for supporting Sky's ongoing success ," Chief Executive Jeremy Darroch told The Washington Post.
