Houston, TX, February 2017; Rupert Murdoch, Jerry Hall, and Lachlan Murdoch before Super Bowl LI commences at NRG Stadium. USA TODAY Network/Press Assocation. All rights reserved.The opponents of the bid by 21st Century Fox (or 21CF), controlled, through a 39% minority stake, by the Murdoch family trust (or MFT) for the 61% of Sky plc it does not already own (but which it effectively controls, also through a 39% stake) can celebrate: they have won their first skirmish.
As widely predicted (including here, “Rupert Returns”, on December 22), the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, Karen Bradley, has indicated that she is “minded” to issue what is called a “European Intervention Notice” (or EIN) in relation to the bid. This allows her to ask the relevant competition authorities (Ofcom and the Competition and Markets Authority, or CMA) to report on two public interest considerations: “the plurality ground” and “the broadcasting standards ground”, to see if there might be a negative impact.
It is important to remember that the threshold for intervention is low – “might”. Likewise, for Ofcom to recommend a full inquiry (which might take the CMA six months as opposed to their own six-week timetable for a preliminary assessment), the threshold of risk is still quite low, though higher than for the Secretary of State. However, it would only be if the CMA thought the risk of harm to plurality or standards was real and significant that it could recommend blocking the deal, or extracting concessions from the parties that would eliminate or ease those concerns.
