UK report: Comcast considering $16 billion bid for broadcaster ITV (Comcast:Not So)

Tom Paine

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Update 12/22: Comcast has poured very cold water on this.
This Is Money, which appears to be the business section of the MAIL ON SUNDAY, is reporting that talks have been held between ITV and Comcast’s NBCUniversal, and that Comcast is considering making an €11 billion ($16.4 billion) bid for the UK broadcaster.

Comcast been signalling clearly its international ambitions for the past year, and other news sources have suggested that ITV could be its intended target, though no other report indicated anything so advanced.

John Malone's Liberty Global is ITV's largest shareholder at 9.9%, though Malone has indicated he has no interest in bidding for control.

ITV is primarily a broadcaster like NBC rather than a distributor. Comcast once owned cable systems in the UK, but exited from the UK market in 1998. Liberty Global is one of the largest cable distributors (or broadband poviders) in the UK.

Morgan Stanley's Americas M&A chief, Bob Eatroff, is joining Comcaast officially in January. He has frequently advised Comcast in the past, including on its NBCU acquisition. Eatroff's title at Comcast, notably, will be Executive Vice President, Global Corporate Development and Strategy.