United Murdochs seek to take control of Sky
Father and sons work together to wrap up unfinished business five years after first derailed bid
Los Angeles
JAMES and Lachlan Murdoch were kids when their father bought into a little British outfit called Satellite Television 33 years ago. Now they're helping Rupert Murdoch in his effort to take control of the company that grew into the European giant Sky plc in a proposed US$14.1 billion deal that would be the biggest in the media mogul's half-century career.
Mr Murdoch's 21st Century Fox Inc, which owns 39 per cent of Sky, reached a preliminary accord last week to acquire the rest of Europe's top pay-TV company. Should the deal work out as planned, the 85-year-old billionaire would wrap up a piece of unfinished business five years after his first bid was derailed by a newspaper spying scandal, while his sons would lay the groundwork for the next chapter. The three Murdochs worked out the details together, according to people familiar with the situation.
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