Date: 31st January 2001

Family Feud


Rupert Murdoch's News Corp and Haim Saban's Saban Entertainment are reportedly far apart on an agreement for News Corp to buy Saban's 49.5 percent of Fox Family Worldwide, which operates the Fox Family channel. Although Saban has exercised an option requiring News Corp to buy out his stake in the company, Murdoch has balked at Saban's $2-billion evaluation of the stake. The London Financial Times quoted a News Corp spokesman as saying, "The suggestions of a $2-billion valuation that are being tossed around are little more than pipe dreams. ... The two sides are not close, and we have not (proposed) a value to him." The FT indicated that negotiations between the two sides could drag on for months.

Source: Studio Briefing