Foxtel may have found a buyer for their 65% shareholding in the Company with the AFR claiming that a UK based streaming group are in talks with Foxtel management, at this stage Foxtel have not denied the move.

London-based DANZ which is owned by Access Industries, an investment group founded by billionaire Sir Len Blavatnik is believed to be running a ruler over the business that Nine Media journalists love to hate due to their owners, owning the struggling Stan a key competitor to Foxtel whose apps Kayo and Binge are delivering consistent growth.

Patrick Delany Foxtel CEO

The big appeal for the UK group, appears to be Foxtel’s sports deals with DANZ looking to buy the network, because of Kayo Sports platform and their AFL, Formula One and AFL content deals as well as their success with Binge and the launch last year of Hubbl.

DAZN launched in 2015 has over 20 million subscribers across 200 countries – with the rights to over 75 different sporting competitions.

In the US, DAZN is available as an Amazon Prime channel.

One of the sources for the story are believed to be Nine Network management who have spoken to DAZN recently.

Telstra, who owns 35% stake in Foxtel, are believed to have confirmed that they are willing to sell their share of Foxtel.

The carrier’s chairman Craig Dunn called it “a sensible move or decision to make on behalf of shareholders”, pointing out that “from time to time the importance of certain assets and their contribution to the value proposition we make to our customers does change”.

News Corp has reportedly held discussions with Platinum Equity about a potential deal.

In their last financial report News Corp’s CEO Robert Thomson said “In response to third party interest, the Company is continuing to assess strategic and financial options for the Foxtel Group, including its capital structure and assets. There is no assurance regarding the timing of any action or transaction, nor that the strategic review will result in a transaction or other strategic change.”

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