Comcast Ends Pursuit Of Fox Assets, Will Focus On Sky

After months of bidding between Walt Disney Co. DIS and Comcast Corporation CMCSA over the collection of Twenty-First Century Fox FOX assets, Comcast has officially redirected its focus.

What Happened

Comcast issued a statement Thursday detailing its new role in the pursuit of the assets, which Fox has agreed to sell to Disney.

"Comcast does not intend to pursue further the acquisition of the Twenty-First Century Fox assets and, instead, will focus on our recommended offer for Sky," said Brian L. Roberts, Chairman and CEO of Comcast. "I'd like to congratulate Bob Iger and the team at Disney and commend the Murdoch family and Fox for creating such a desirable and respected company."

Why It’s Important

Comcast will now focus directly on the valuable acquisition of British pay television service Sky.

This deal would give Comcast the global expansion it needs to stay relevant in the current market and to compete with services like Netflix NFLX and Amazon.com AMZN. Sky streams to over 22 million customers in several countries.

Sky would also offer popular sports, news and entertainment broadcasting and an innovative broadband service, giving Comcast more options in terms of content and distribution.

What’s Next

Fox initially sought to obtain this portion of Sky, while Disney has expressed interest as well. Despite Comcast's determination, this acquisition will likely not end without a fight.

Comcast was trading up about 3 percent shortly after Thursday's opening bell, while Disney was up about 2.5 percent. Fox's stock was down 1.5 percent.

Related Links:

5 Reasons Why Comcast Is Fighting Disney For Fox

Comcast Corporation Statement on Twenty-First Century Fox

Photo courtesy of Comcast.