Comcast officially bid $65 million for the assets of 21st Century Fox on Wednesday.
The all-cash proposal, higher than the expected $60 billion, was about 20 percent above the offer Disney made in December, and it included added incentives. Comcast said it would reimburse Disney $1.5 billion of the $2.5 billion breakup fee Disney would have to pay.
Daniel Ives, the chief strategy officer and head of technology research at GBH Insights, said this offer won't be the last blow in the fight for Fox.
"Right now you have a UFC match going on between Comcast and Disney," he said in an interview Wednesday with Cheddar just after news of Comcast's offer. "I'd expect Disney to come back with another offer in the next 48 hours."
Ives said Disney can't afford to lose Fox to Comcast, and ultimately the deal might get done "in the high $60 ー $70 billion" range.
"You knew a bid was coming after the green light yesterday for AT&T, but this is a good offer," he said.
Comcast's offer comes a day after a U.S. judge ruled in favor of AT&T in its proposed acquisition of Time Warner, a decision thought to open the door for other mega-mergers in the media industry.
Internet providers and cable distributors are looking for more revenue streams to compete with streaming companies such as Netflix and Amazon, which create their own content.
But regulators have criticized consolidation of media assets. The Justice Department sued to block AT&T's $85 billion deal last November, citing concerns over the telecom company owning DirecTV and Time Warner. The judge ruled Tuesday that the government didn't sufficiently make its case that a tie-up would stifle competition or harm consumers.
Before the ruling, Comcast had said it was preparing an offer for Fox if the judge decided in AT&T's favor. Its all-cash offer was considerably more than the $52.4 billion in stock Disney bid last year.
The winning suitor will gain control of Fox's film and TV studios, including rights to the *X-Men*, *Avatar*, and *Simpsons* franchises; its stake in Hulu; and cable channels including FX.
"Now you've got a battle royale on our hands for these assets," said Ives.
Fox had rebuffed an earlier offer from Comcast, even though it was higher than Disney's. But Rich Greenfield, an analyst with BTIG, [told Cheddar last week](https://cheddar.com/videos/rich-greenfield-murdoch-no-longer-set-on-selling-to-disney-for-stock) that Rupert Murdoch, who controls Fox, was open to deals other than Disney.
For the full interview, [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/what-comcasts-bid-for-fox-means-for-media-mania),
Orangetheory Fitness is redefining the future of workouts with smarter tech, strength-based programming, and community-driven studios built for what’s next.
Spain's government has fined Airbnb 64 million euros or $75 million for advertising unlicensed tourist rentals. The consumer rights ministry announced the fine on Monday. The ministry stated that many listings lacked proper license numbers or included incorrect information. The move is part of Spain's ongoing efforts to regulate short-term rental companies amid a housing affordability crisis especially in popular urban areas. The ministry ordered Airbnb in May to remove around 65,000 listings for similar violations. The government's consumer rights minister emphasized the impact on families struggling with housing. Airbnb said it plans to challenge the fine in court.
Roomba maker iRobot has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, but says that it doesn’t expect any disruptions to devices as the more than 30-year-old company is taken private under a restructuring process. iRobot said that it is being acquired by Picea through a court-supervised process. Picea is the company's primary contract manufacturer. The Bedford, Massachusetts-based anticipates completing the prepackaged chapter 11 process by February.
Serbia’s prosecutor for organized crime has charged a government minister and three others with abuse of position and falsifying of documents related to a luxury real estate project linked to U.S. President Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner. The charges came on Monday. The investigation centers on a controversy over a a bombed-out military complex in central Belgrade that was a protected cultural heritage zone but that is facing redevelopment as a luxury compound by a company linked to Kushner. The $500 million proposal to build a high-rise hotel, offices and shops at the site has met fierce opposition from experts at home and abroad. Selakovic and others allegedly illegally lifted the protection status for the site by falsifying documentation.
Wealthfront’s CFO Alan Iberman talks the $2.05B IPO and the major moment for robo banking as the company bets on AI, automation, and “self-driving money."
