(Reuters) -Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp said on Monday it would sell its Australian cable TV and streaming unit Foxtel to British over-the-top sports streaming and entertainment platform DAZN for US$3.4 billion ($2.1 billion), including debt .
As part of the deal, Foxtel’s current debt will be refinanced at closing and News Corp will hold a 6% stake in DAZN, a London-headquartered global streaming platform backed by billionaire Len Blavatnik.
The sale frees News Corp, owner of print mastheads like the Wall Street Journal, from its involvement in an asset struggling to cope in an era dominated by streamers like Netflix.
Foxtel has been squeezing News Corp’s profits for years as the number of people paying monthly subscriptions for broadcast content switches to cheaper streaming options. Foxtel itself has launched a streaming service that charges less than its traditional service.
News Corp will gain 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 company reported in early August that it could sell Foxtel after receiving an approach.
Australian telecommunications company Telstra will also divest its 35% stake in Foxtel, for A$128 million, and emerge as a 3% stakeholder in DAZN.
The deal is subject to regulatory approval and is expected to close in the second half of the 2025 fiscal year.
ASX-listed shares of News Corp rose 1% to A$49.65 in early trade, while Telstra shares traded 0.4% higher against a rising broader benchmark index.
($1 = 1.5997 Australian dollars)
(Reporting by Rishav Chatterjee in Bengaluru; Editing by Jamie Freed and Sonali Paul)
