FT: Murdoch in last-ditch plea on Dow Jones

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Source: Financial Times

Murdoch in last-ditch plea on Dow Jones

By Aline van Duyn in New York

Published: July 30 2007 18:28 | Last updated: July 30 2007 18:28

With just a few hours left for members of the Bancroft family
to decide whether to back a sale of Dow Jones, News Corp said
it was “highly unlikely” to proceed with its $5bn bid unless it
got clear backing from the family.

The Bancroft family controls 64 per cent of Dow Jones’s voting
shares and is essential to determining whether or not Rupert
Murdoch’s News Corp succeeds in its $60-a-share bid for the
owner of the Wall Street Journal.

A News Corp spokesman said that, based on reports that family
members holding around 28 per cent of Dow Jones’s voting
shares had indicated their support as of Sunday, it was “highly
unlikely” Mr Murdoch would proceed unless there was a greater
level of support.

-snip-

The chances of the deal going ahead have repeatedly been
called “too close to call”. Reflecting the uncertainty, shares in
Dow Jones remained volatile on Monday. At around 1230 New
York time, they were down nearly 6.5 per cent at $50.93.

-snip-

Read more: http://www.ft.com/cms/s/d0ab2de4-3ebe-11dc-bfcf-0000779fd2ac.html