that rupert murdoch is at it again!

Having hogged the headlines of late with his acquisition of myspace, and his creeping presence on the shareholders roster of ITV, Uncle Rupe may soon add the Wall Street Journal (owned by Dow Jones) to his massive empire. News Corp have offered $5bn for the second largest paper in the US... a 65% premium per share!

For Rupe, owning the paper would give him access to their v. successful website, as well as a pool of expertise prior to his launch of the Fox Business Channel. The paper is still owned mainly by 20 or so members of the Bancroft family... several of whom are keen to sell, it seems. There will be a tussle, no doubt, and rumours abound that Dow Jones are desperately searching for a "White Knight" to take Rupe on... possible candidates are the New York Times or the Washington Post. Mind you, what Mr M wants, he usually gets!

Whilst we are on the subject, you are undoubtedly aware of the furore surrounding Rupe's acquisition of 17% of ITV shares. This has led to cries of "Foul!" and demands for an enquiry into his control of the UK media scene. For what it's worth,  Mystic Matthew's prediction is that Rupe will give up his interest in ITV in exchange for clearance to bid for Channel 5 which, post the analogue/digital switchover, will become a national, terrestrial, free-to-air channel. All he wil have to do is weight up the offering with a couple of blockbuster programmes (Simpsons, 24) and watch the ad revenue pour in!

Watch this space!