Las Vegas Sun

March 28, 2024

21st Century Fox abandons pursuit of Time Warner

Jeff Bewkes

Lionel Cironneau / AP

In this June 18, 2014, photo, Jeff Bewkes, chairman and CEO of Time Warner, attends the 2014 Cannes Lions 61st International Advertising Festival in Cannes, France. Time Warner on Wednesday, July 16, 2014, said that it has rejected a takeover bid worth about $76 billion from Rupert Murdoch’s 21st Century Fox and said it has no interest in further discussions about a combination of two of the world’s largest media and entertainment companies.

NEW YORK — Twenty-First Century Fox is abandoning its attempt to take over Time Warner in a proposed deal that would have combined two of the world's biggest media companies.

The about-face announced Tuesday comes three weeks after Time Warner Inc. revealed that it had rejected 21st Century Fox's unsolicited $76 billion buyout offer.

Besides that rebuff, 21st Century Fox CEO Rupert Murdoch cited a decline in his New York company's stock price as one of the reasons for ending the pursuit of Time Warner.

With the proposed deal off the table, 21st Century Fox's board approved a plan to spend $6 billion buying back the company's stock during the next year.

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