Disney’s Bob Iger won’t walk away from Fox bidding war: Porter Bibb
The Walt Disney Company likely won’t back down after Comcast made a larger, all-cash offer of $65 billion for most of 21st Century Fox’s film and television assets, according to a media analyst.
Porter Bibb, managing partner at Mediatech Capital Partners, told FOX Business’ Liz Claman that Disney CEO Bob Iger is crafting his next move.
“He is sharpening his pencil and putting his next bid together because he’s not walking away,” Bibb said on Tuesday.
Bibb said although Disney is not attempting to beat Comcast’s offer, it must raise its bid for Fox’s assets.
“The market is saying, ‘You cannot go with the Disney bid as it stands,’” he said.
21st Century Fox previously agreed to sell its entertainment assets, including the Twentieth Century Fox film and TV studios along with cable and international TV businesses, to Disney. The deal was for $52.4 billion in stock.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CMCSA | COMCAST CORP. | 40.24 | +0.62 | +1.56% |
| DIS | THE WALT DISNEY CO. | 112.61 | +0.18 | +0.16% |
| FOXA | FOX CORP. | 31.39 | +0.62 | +2.01% |
Both Comcast and Disney would be willing to sell off Fox’s 21 regional sports TV networks to avoid any antitrust intervention from the Department of Justice, according to Bibb.
“The key to this deal with Comcast, Fox and Disney is the out of town tryout that’s occurring right now in the U.K. over Sky,” he said on “Countdown to the Closing Bell.”
The U.K. has cleared 21st Century Fox to take part in a bidding war for Sky.
Disney has pledged $2 billion in Sky News funding over 15 years if the 24-hour channel is acquired through the 21st Century Fox deal. Comcast has five days to put its best offer on the table for Sky News under European Union and U.K. regulations.
“Bob Iger desperately wants Sky as well as the other Fox entertainment assets,” Bibb said. “He is going to have to counter that.”
The board of directors of 21st Century Fox will meet on Wednesday to discuss the Comcast and Disney offers, according to FOX Business’ Charlie Gasparino. Disney has five days to counter Comcast’s if board members find that Comcast’s bid is a better offer than Disney’s.
“This is Rupert Murdoch’s biggest deal and he’s in the catbird seat. He cannot lose, his Fox shareholders cannot lose and it’s going to go through the roof in terms of value,” Bibb said.
21st Century Fox is the parent company of FOX Business and Fox News.