US: Murdoch’s $80B Time Warner bid rejected

Rupert Murdoch-owned Twenty-First Century Fox is reportedly pursuing an acquisition of Time Warner, but the deal won’t be made easily.

Reports say Time Warner rejected a buyout offer worth upwards of $80 billion from Fox. Despite the denial, experts say Murdoch will likely pursue an acquisition. Unnamed sources say Murdoch has no intention of abandoning the pursuit, and ahs a reputation for pursuing takeover deals that are initially rejected.

While the deal will likely face intense antitrust scrutiny, reports say it would mark the largest media merger in more than a decade.

The takeover would also add to the influx of media merger frenzy in the nation as Comcast readies to take over Time Warner Cable, which once enveloped Time Warner, as well as AT&T’s acquisition of DirecTV.

Should Fox and Time Warner merge, it would create a television powerhouse with big content names like HBO, Warner Bros and Nascar broadcasting.

Full content: NYTimes

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