Rupert Murdoch's News Corp has announced it will sell its Australian cable TV and streaming unit Foxtel to British over-the-top sports streaming and entertainment platform DAZN for $3.4 billion, including debt.
As part of the deal, Foxtel's debt will be refinanced at closing and News Corp will hold a six per cent stake in DAZN, a London-headquartered global streaming platform backed by British-Ukranian billionaire Len Blavatnik.
The sale relieves News Corp, which owns print mastheads such as the Wall Street Journal, of its involvement in an asset that has struggled to cope in an era dominated by streamers like Netflix.
Billionaire Rupert Murdoch built a media empire that includes Fox News. (AP PHOTO)
Foxtel has weighed on News Corp profit for years as the number of people who pay monthly subscriptions for its broadcast content switch to cheaper streaming options. Foxtel has itself launched a streaming service charging less than its traditional service.
News Corp will get one board seat at DAZN, which was founded in 2016 and is ramping up its efforts to become a global streaming platform like Apple TV.
The US firm flagged in early August it might sell Foxtel after having received an approach.
Australian telecommunications firm Telstra will also divest its 35 per cent stake in Foxtel, for $A128 million, and will emerge as a three per cent stakeholder in DAZN.
The deal remains subject to regulatory approvals and is expected to close in the second of fiscal 2025.
ASX-listed shares of News Corp gained one per cent to $A49.65 in early trade while shares of Telstra traded 0.4 per cent higher against a rising broader benchmark index.