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UPDATE 1-News Corp makes unsolicited bid for Dow Jones

Tue May 1, 2007 12:13pm EDT

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Mergers & Acquisitions

NEW YORK, May 1 (Reuters) - Rupert Murdoch's News Corp. NWS.N has made an estimated $5 billion bid to buy Dow Jones & Co. Inc. DJ.N, owner of the Wall Street Journal, Dow Jones said on Tuesday, in a transaction that if successful would give media mogul Rupert Murdoch a lock on global financial news.

Dow Jones' board of directors and trustees of the controlling Bancroft family are currently evaluating the unsolicited $60-a-share bid to buy out all shares outstanding of Dow Jones common stock and Class b stock in cash, or in a combination of cash and News Corp. stock.

News Corp. was not immediately reachable for comment.

Dow Jones shares rose 54 percent in composite trading, while News Corp. shares fell 2.46 percent. Dow Jones stock was halted on the New York Stock Exchange.

Murdoch has said the company planned to launch a business news cable channel by the end of 2007 to rival CNBC, aiming to replicate the success News Corp. has had with cable news.

A Dow Jones purchase would dent top-rated General Electric (GE.N)-owned CNBC cable business news network's leading position in cable television business news, one News Corp. investor said.

"CNBC relies very heavily on the Wall Street Journal," said the investor, Larry Haverty, associate portfolio manager at Gamco. "This is a shot at the bell against CNBC."

CNBC reported the bid earlier today.

((Reporting by Kenneth Li and Megan Davies; Reuters Messaging: kenneth.li.reuters.com@reuters.net; +646-223-6224; e-mail: kenneth.li@reuters.com; Editing by Deborah Cohen))

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Mergers & Acquisitions


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