By Fatma Younis
UK Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy announced Wednesday she will intervene in the planned £1.6 billion ($2.2 billion) deal between Sky, owned by Comcast, and ITV's media and entertainment arm. She will ask the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) and Ofcom to review the takeover and report by Jan. 27 on competition and media public interest grounds.
Nandy said she will introduce legislation for a new public interest consideration for streaming services, arguing it should apply to on-demand programs as well as traditional broadcasting. The proposed deal, announced in June, includes ITV's terrestrial channels and streaming service, while ITV Studios will remain independent.
The combined Sky-ITV entity, if approved, would become part of NBCUniversal following its split from Comcast. Nandy may refer the deal to the CMA for a further investigation after receiving the regulators' reports.
