Dow Jones deal may get quick OK
Antitrust experts expect few significant challenges
Dow Jones deal may get quick OK

By The Associated Press

Published: August 2, 2007

WASHINGTON — Antitrust experts predict News Corp.'s $5 billion purchase of Dow Jones & Co. will glide through regulatory reviews because the global media empire is not concentrated in a particular product or region.

Rupert Murdoch's acquisition of The Wall Street Journal's parent company could be approved in 30 days or less, the shortest review possible under antitrust law, says Robert Litan, a former Justice Department antitrust official who is a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution.

The deal likely wouldn't confront significant challenges from the Federal Communications Commission either, say several lawyers who spoke about the transaction on the condition of anonymity because News Corp. is a client. At least one FCC commissioner disagreed.

"This deal means more media consolidation and fewer independent voices, and it specifically impacts the local market in New York City,” Commissioner Michael Copps said Wednesday. "What's good for shareholders of huge media conglomerates isn't always what's good for the public interest or our civic dialogue.”

Copps urged the FCC to analyze the facts and legal ramifications of the transaction with respect to FCC rules and its "statutory obligation to protect the public interest.”

"I hope nobody views this as a slam-dunk,” Copps said.

Among other holdings, News Corp. owns the New York Post newspaper and the online social hangout site MySpace. It also owns the Fox broadcast network, Fox News Channel, the Twentieth Century Fox movie and TV studio and has a one-third stake in satellite provider DirecTV.

The sprawling nature of Murdoch's holdings works to his advantage, several experts said, because it avoids the concentration in a particular industry that usually trigger antitrust scrutiny.

Murdoch's company has extensive overseas holdings, including satellite broadcasters in Europe and Asia, newspapers in the United Kingdom and Australia, and book publishing and magazine properties.

Federal cross-ownership rules prohibit one entity from owning a television station and a newspaper in the same local market. While News Corp. owns two local stations in New York, the Journal isn't considered a local New York City paper under an unrelated prior FCC ruling, two lawyers said.

After News Corp. and Dow Jones finalize a formal agreement, they are required to notify the Justice Department and the Federal Trade Commission.

Transactions valued at more than $60 million automatically undergo a 30-day review by one of those agencies. The agencies usually divide antitrust reviews on a case-by-case basis. The Justice Department would likely review a News Corp.-Dow Jones deal, as it generally oversees media transactions, several lawyers said.

Shares of Dow Jones rose 72 cents to $58.10 Wednesday, while News Corp. rose 16 cents to $22.82 a share.

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