Dow Jones & Co. wants to keep its options open. After
receiving a lofty $5 billion bid from Rupert Murdoch last month, Dow
Jones didn't accept the offer but eventually said it was willing to listen to
all interested parties. One duo that showed some interest for Dow Jones
recently was General Electric Co. and Microsoft Corp.
The
New York Times reported Monday that after being approached by investment
bankers of the Bancroft family, who own a controlling stake in Dow Jones,
General Electric turned to MSNBC partner Microsoft about making a joint bid
for the New York-based publisher of The Wall Street Journal. But after closer
examination, the software company rejected the idea of teaming with GE to make
a play for Dow Jones. Maybe it was the regulatory concerns of a possible deal
that scared away Microsoft. After all, GE is the parent of the number one
rated business news channel CNBC, and the addition of the Dow Jones business
news empire would only create a bigger player in the
business sector. So, for Dow Jones, it's keeping its eyes and ears open
from other interested parties. —
Gerald Magpily
See
MarketWatch article
See
New York Times article
See DealWatch on Rupert Murdoch
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