News Corp. Shareholders Approve Splitting Company in Two

Separation scheduled for June 28

News Corp. shareholders approved a plan to split the company into two distinct and publicly traded media conglomerates.

One company, 21st Century Fox, comprise its television and film holdings; the other, News Corp., will consist of its publishing and education assets.

The vote in favor of division came at a special meeting of stockholders on Tuesday. The company did not release a tally but said the approval was "overwhelming." 

The separation is scheduled to be completed on on June 28, 2013.

“We are pleased that the proposals have been approved by an overwhelming majority of the outstanding shares, and that our shareholders clearly recognize the anticipated benefits of the separation," Rupert Murdoch, chairman and CEO of News Corp., said in a statement. 

The company's board of directors approved the separation in May.

The publishing division is worth a fraction of what the studio side is valued at — under the separation, shareholders will receive a ratio of one share of the new News Corp. for every four shares of the old News Corporation.

The decision to fundamentally alter the makeup of News Corp. was announced last summer and was partly undertaken to shield the more valuable film and television assets from the phone hacking scandal that engulfed the company's United Kingdom-based tabloids. The corrupt news gathering tactics at the now defunct News of the World has inspired a wave of legal issues and bad publicity for News Corp.

21st Century Fox will boast Fox broadcasting, 20th Century Fox, National Geographic and Fox News; News Corp. will be made up of such titles as the Wall Street Journal and the New York Post.

Murdoch will serve as chairman and CEO of the proposed 21st Century Fox and executive chairman of the new News Corp.

Comments