UK pay-television broadcaster BSkyB could seal a deal this summer to gain control of sister pay-television broadcasters, Sky Italia in Italy and Sky Deutschland in Germany, in a move that would consolidate Rupert Murdoch’s European pay-television assets.
The €10bn ($13.8bn) deal would combine media company 21st Century Fox's 39-per-cent stake in BSkyB with its 55-per-cent stake in Sky Deutschland and the wholly owned Sky Italia, according to news agency Bloomberg. All three services are major sports broadcasters in their respective countries.
The deal would make BSkyB Europe’s dominant pay-television broadcaster and would allow 21st Century Fox to focus on entertainment programming, Bloomberg added.
The companies have been in talks for months and a deal could be announced as early as this summer, the report said.