London — Britain gave the edge on Tuesday to US cable giant Comcast in a multibillion-dollar takeover battle with Rupert Murdoch’s entertainment titan 21st Century Fox for the pan-European TV group Sky. Culture secretary Matt Hancock announced that he has cleared Comcast’s £22bn bid for all of Sky, setting the stage for a bidding war. Sky, which is best known for its live coverage of English Premier League football, has long been a jewel in the crown of media magnate Murdoch. "I have concluded that the proposed merger does not raise public interest concerns and so I can confirm today that I will not be issuing an intervention notice," Hancock told parliament in London. Long-running saga However, turning to Fox’s lower offer per share for the 61% of Sky it does not already own, Hancock said he favoured "divesting Sky News" to a suitable third party to address public-interest issues of concern identified by regulators before giving Fox the nod. Fox is seeking to buy the 61% of Sky th...
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