Disney's Fox deal: What we know and what we still want to know

Walt Disney is expected to announce the acquisition of a large chunk of 21st Century Fox on Thursday night.

The deal would be the biggest ever for Disney and a significant milestone in the long career of media mogul Rupert Murdoch.

The Murdochs will control about 5 per cent of Disney after the deal.Credit: AP

Disney will pay $US28 to $US29 a share in an all-stock deal for Fox businesses including a movie studio, cable channels and international assets, according to a person familiar with the matter. That values the remaining Fox holdings at $US11 to $US12 a share, the person said. The Wall Street Journal reported the figures on Wednesday.

Below are some of the major points of the deal:

What we know

• $US60 billion ($79 billion). That's the approximate value of the assets being purchased, including debt.
• The Murdochs will control about 5 per cent of Disney after the deal.
• The sale includes the 20th Century Fox film business, but not the actual studio backlot.
• Much of the deal valuation is based on Fox's regional sports networks, such as YES, the New York Yankees channel.
• Disney is acquiring Fox's 39 per cent stake in European TV provider Sky.
• With the acquisition of Fox's 30 per cent of US streaming service Hulu, Disney's share jumps to a majority ownership.
• Fox shareholders will be left with Fox News, Fox Business and Fox Sports 1 - essentially the live programming assets - as well as the Fox broadcast network.
• Fox CEO James Murdoch could eventually be offered a senior job at Disney.

What we don't know

• How much of Fox's $US12.9 billion in net debt stays with Fox or is assumed by Disney?
• Fox as a whole will get about 25 per cent of Disney's stock as part of the sale. Will all that be distributed to Fox shareholders?
• What becomes of that real estate? Will the combined company adopt Disney's film strategy, which means a lot fewer art-house pictures, such as 2014 Oscar winner 12 Years a Slave, and more blockbuster sequels like Avatar?
• How will sports leagues, fans and regulators react to ESPN's owner controlling that much live sports on TV?
• How will the deal affect Fox's pending offer to acquire the rest of that business?
• How will that change the strategy at one of the strongest competitors to Netflix?
• What will become of Murdoch's broadcast network when it no longer has a TV studio behind it?
• Is there a shot he becomes Disney CEO when Bob Iger ultimately retires?

Bloomberg