Comcast makes $65 billion offer for 21st Century Fox, setting up bidding war with Walt Disney

[BumRushDaShow]

Source: Washington Post

BREAKING NEWS

NEW YORK — Comcast made a stunning $65 billion bid Wednesday in what is expected to be the first of many attempts to buy up pieces of the entertainment world in the wake of AT&T’s decisive legal victory over the government to buy Time Warner.

The offer sets up a battle of wills between two of the most dominant and deep-pocketed entertainment companies in the world — Walt Disney and Comcast, the nation’s leading cable company which already owns Universal Studios and NBC. Comcast’s offer is about 19 percent higher than what Disney offered late last year.

But the headline-grabbing bid is unlikely to be the last to be announced in the coming months, given the government’s failed attempt to stop AT&T from purchasing Time Warner. Media and entertainment stocks soared Wednesday on speculation of a wave of consolidation in the industry.

Comcast’s is an all-cash deal at a significant premium over Disney’s $52.4 billion all-stock package. Its move will likely trigger a new offer from Disney and even a bidding war as two media giants battle for dominance both at home and overseas.

Read more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/business/wp/2018/06/13/comcast-prepares-to-bid-for-fox-setting-up-a-media-smackdown/?utm_term=.197184707de6

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Soon we'll be left with - "The Pharmaceutical Company", "The Cable Company", "The Supermarket", "The Phone Company", ....

[jalan48]

1. Yep, and "The Government Company".

[IronLionZion]

2. Hoping Comcast goes bankrupt on this

and is broken up. They need more competition for cable service. America's most hated company.

[onenote]

6. How would "breaking up" Comcast create more competition for cable service.

Pretty much everyone has at least 3 and often 4 or even 5 choices for subscribing to a video service provider. Plus increasingly, over the top services, such as YouTubeTV offer another way of accessing the same video channels provided by cable operators.

[cstanleytech]

7. That's not the case for more rural towns.

Where I live we only have 2 options, one from uverse at 12mb and the other from WOW at 100mb and they became available only within the last year.

[onenote]

8. Are you talking about Internet Access Service or Cable Service?

The post I was responding to specifically decried the lack of competition in "cable service" which is different than Internet Access Service.

[cstanleytech]

9. Well for internet we only had uverse for 7+ years until WOW came in

but for TV our only options were DirectTV or Dish until WOW.

[IronLionZion]

13. I have only 1 option for cable service, Comcast

and I live in a large city. For TV the only other options are over the air or satellite, no other cable providers. Comcast has a monopoly.

For broadband internet it's just Comcast or Verizon DSL, which is much slower. I want more options for cable service providers.

Youtube, Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hulu, etc. all require high speed internet service from someone like Comcast. When Comcast is the only choice, they jack up the prices and have terrible service with frequent disruptions. With the end of net neutrality, they can throttle those other competing video services and keep fast lanes reserved for Comcast's own streaming video service.

It's very bad for the consumer because we get worse service at a higher price.

[onenote]

14. For video, DBS is a substitute for cable.

As is reflected by the millions of consumers who have dropped "cable" and become satellite subscribers.

[SamKnause]

15. I live in rural America.

There is no cable available where I live. (16 years)

There was no cable available at my past residence. (5 years)

I have one choice, satellite; Directv or Dish.

I get my internet through my phone line, DSL.

It is extremely slow !!!

I can't stream anything in high definition.

[targetpractice]

3. "Let the great no net neutrality experiment begin!"

[exboyfil]

4. The world of Rollerball

[Aristus]

10. A highly underrated film.

I actually liked the corporate anthems, from a musical perspective. The Houston anthem sounded like a Bach organ cantata, while the Tokyo anthem had the serene beauty of Japanese folk music.

[exboyfil]

5. By far the most important development

is the fact that Marvel will not regain control of the Fantastic Four movie rights if Comcast wins.

I wonder if the Donald is a fan of super hero movies? Surely that could be the basis to allow the Disney purchase to go through.

[bucolic_frolic]

11. Do these media companies understand

that I turned them off when I ditched cable 6.5 years ago and never looked back? I give no money to them. Only Verizon for internet. I don't knowlingly buy from any of their advertisers. My time is my own. I am stronger and better off for it.

Never again.

[DeminPennswoods]

12. That's funny about Comcast's "deep pockets"

It's more like Comcast's hands deep in the pockets of its subscribers.

[YOHABLO]

16. They have everyone addicted to their TV. If people were serious, they'd give these co.s the finger.

Hit the Library folks. That ain't gonna happen is it.