(12-12-2017 10:01 AM)Frank the Tank Wrote:  

(12-12-2017 09:45 AM)solohawks Wrote:  

(12-12-2017 08:18 AM)Frank the Tank Wrote:  

(12-07-2017 10:56 AM)MWC Tex Wrote:  Sounds like Fox is streamlining quite a bit and cashing out while the getting is good. Those RSN's are valuable now, but with the cord cutting that isn't stopping, those RSN's are going to be an anchor as more the costs goes up while the revenue from the cable subs keep declining down as more people cut cable completely or skinny down to streaming TV package.

Getting cash out of properties that are in decline before they become worthless is good. Fox will have the cash they need to adjust to an ever swifter change in viewing of the customers.

Maybe an offbeat thought here: ATSC 3.0 has just been finalized for 4k OTA broadcasting. I wonder if Fox, in addition to stream lining there business, will use the cash to upgrade their O&O stations and help affiliate stations with the cost to upgrade to 3.0. This 4k broadcasting may change the viewership of OTA broadcasts, because also if I understand correctly, the 3.0 standard will be able to have mobile devices receive the OTA signals and have live TV on phones/tablets and other devices.

One very important point: this is NOT proposed as a cash deal. Instead, it’s a stock exchange where Fox shareholders will each receive Disney stock on a proportional basis. The upshot of this is that the Murdoch family will become the largest shareholders of The Walt Disney Company by far. As a result, this isn’t really a “cash out” for Fox. It’s about the Murdochs getting plurality power over the biggest entertainment behemoth on Earth (Disney) while still retaining control of Fox OTA/News/Sports on the side. No cash is involved here. As I noted previously, Fox isn’t a faceless corporation - it’s very much a family business that happens to be public company, so this is about what’s best for the Murdoch family long-term as opposed to what’s best for Fox (as I don’t think there’s any way that a completely independent Fox would sell off its cable and entertainment assets like this).

What percentage of Disney is the Murdoch family looking to get?

Current Disney market cap is around $162 billion, while the proposed Fox purchase is around $50 billion. That means that Fox shareholders would receive about 30% of Disney. In turn, the Murdoch family holds about 40% of the voting shares of Fox. That translates into over 12% of Disney by my rough calculation, although I'll disclaim that this isn't taking into account non-voting shares and how those are treated (so the actual total may be a little less). The largest current shareholders of Disney stock is actually the family of the late Steve Jobs (via the 2006 sale of Pixar to Disney, as he was the top shareholder in that computer animation company alongside Apple) and they hold less than 5% of the company's shares as of now.

EDIT: Ignore my back-of-the-napkin calculations and see this Bloomberg article:

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/...sney-stake

The current proposal looks like Fox shareholders would receive 25% of Disney, which would translate into the Murdoch family getting about 5% of the company (which would still make them the largest Disney shareholders).

I saw 25% as the reported interest of Fox shareholders, which would translate into a 10% stake for the Murdoch family. Still a huge stake.