Date: 11th December 2000

Murdoch Pinched For Cash?


Placing in jeopardy Rupert Murdoch's ability to bid for DirecTV, Saban Entertainment reportedly plans to exercise a "put" option on its 49.5-percent stake in Fox Family Worldwide, forcing Murdoch's News Corp, which also owns 49.5 percent of the company, to buy Saban's share for at least $2 billion, the Wall Street Journal reported today (Monday). The report comes as industry rumors spread that Murdoch was preparing to raise his offer to buy Hughes Electronics' DirecTV or Hughes Electronics itself.

Source: Studio Briefing