Disney wins: Comcast drops out of Fox bidding but will pursue U.K. broadcaster

Comcast is bowing out of the high-stakes bidding for a large portion of 21st Century Fox.

The company issued a statement Thursday morning saying that it was dropping out of the bidding for Fox's cable TV and international distribution assets, which Disney has agreed to buy.

"Comcast does not intend to pursue further the acquisition of the Twenty-First Century Fox assets, and instead, will focus on our recommended offer for Sky," the company said in a statement.

Related

Business

BusinessComcast raises bid for Sky to $34 billion, tops Fox's offer

Comcast, which owns the parent company of NBC News, NBCUniversal, had initially approached Fox executive chairman Rupert Murdoch late last year, but talks didn’t go anywhere, partly because Fox feared the regulatory risks of such a deal.

Murdoch then began talking to Disney CEO Bob Iger, who offered $52.4 billion for major pieces of Fox including its movie and TV production studios as well as its international channels. Comcast responded with an increased offer of $65 billion before Disney topped the bidding with $70 billion.

Brian L. Roberts, chairman and CEO of Comcast, in a statement congratulated Iger "and the team at Disney and commend the Murdoch family and Fox for creating such a desirable and respected company."

For Subscribers

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAmerican passenger drafted goodbye texts to her family as Flydubai plane plummeted

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCornell rape allegation pushes embattled New York prosecutor into national spotlight

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAbdul El-Sayed tries to woo MAHA voters as Democrats seek inroads with RFK’s supporters

FOR SUBSCRIBERSKratom-like substances are popping up in a typically benign supplement

FOR SUBSCRIBERSGOP super PAC increases its spending for Sen. Jon Husted in tough Ohio race

FOR SUBSCRIBERSRecords reveal tumultuous marriage between slain New York Times executive and wife

FOR SUBSCRIBERSFrom clean energy warrior to ‘wall of shame,’ James Talarico reverses on a fossil fuel money pledge

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCongressional staff planned official trip with luxury stops in Italy and France weeks before election

FOR SUBSCRIBERSA harrowing ordeal aboard an Israel-bound plane

FOR SUBSCRIBERSOpenAI CEO Sam Altman to skip congressional hearing on rogue AI agents

FOR SUBSCRIBERSKey DOJ lawyers departed Trump ‘grand conspiracy’ probe amid pressure to produce, source says

FOR SUBSCRIBERSTrump’s new AI chatbot often links to a site launched under Clinton 26 years ago

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAt MAHA summit, industry CEOs the movement once vilified take the stage

FOR SUBSCRIBERSThis Paralympian has two goals: Win medals and give away $500,000 to her teammates

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCornell rape allegation spotlights stringent New York state laws that have long drawn criticism

The Fox-Disney deal is already approved by the Justice Department and the two firms can now begin the work of consolidating their acquisition after Fox shareholders approve the vote on July 27.

For Subscribers

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAmerican passenger drafted goodbye texts to her family as Flydubai plane plummeted

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCornell rape allegation pushes embattled New York prosecutor into national spotlight

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAbdul El-Sayed tries to woo MAHA voters as Democrats seek inroads with RFK’s supporters

FOR SUBSCRIBERSKratom-like substances are popping up in a typically benign supplement

FOR SUBSCRIBERSGOP super PAC increases its spending for Sen. Jon Husted in tough Ohio race

FOR SUBSCRIBERSRecords reveal tumultuous marriage between slain New York Times executive and wife

FOR SUBSCRIBERSFrom clean energy warrior to ‘wall of shame,’ James Talarico reverses on a fossil fuel money pledge

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCongressional staff planned official trip with luxury stops in Italy and France weeks before election

FOR SUBSCRIBERSA harrowing ordeal aboard an Israel-bound plane

FOR SUBSCRIBERSOpenAI CEO Sam Altman to skip congressional hearing on rogue AI agents

FOR SUBSCRIBERSKey DOJ lawyers departed Trump ‘grand conspiracy’ probe amid pressure to produce, source says

FOR SUBSCRIBERSTrump’s new AI chatbot often links to a site launched under Clinton 26 years ago

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAt MAHA summit, industry CEOs the movement once vilified take the stage

FOR SUBSCRIBERSThis Paralympian has two goals: Win medals and give away $500,000 to her teammates

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCornell rape allegation spotlights stringent New York state laws that have long drawn criticism

Among the Fox assets to be transferred is a 39 percent stake in the British satellite broadcaster Sky, which Comcast is also trying to acquire. Comcast is offering $34 billion to shareholders, topping Fox's bid of $32.5 billion for the remaining 61 percent of the company.

• Add to Google

AT&T buys Time Warner: Welcome to the media's merger mania

03:06

Disney will now probably begin the process of selling off the 22 regional sports networks it will acquire from Fox. It agreed to shed those assets in order to win Justice Department approval.

Some investors and analysts had questioned the wisdom of Comcast's pursuit of Fox, noting that it would need to take on a large amount of debt as part of a deal. Comcast shares rose by 3 percent in pre-market trading after news of the company's decision broke.