After Rupert Murdoch, 92, announced he is stepping down as chair of Fox Corp. and News Corp. media holdings, effective in November, he is lining up a bid for The Telegraph.
The auction is being run by Lloyds Banking Group and Murdoch is among a dozen potential bidders in a move that stands to impact the news industry in the U.K. and worldwide, according to the report.
In addition to entering the separate Lloyds bidding for The Spectator magazine, Murdoch's News UK has registered for The Telegraph bidding, despite a potential block by regulators concerned about The Telegraph being under the same ownership as The Times and The Sun, according to the report.
There is also reportedly concern by regulators the bidding might merely amount to an intelligence gathering endeavor or to potentially impact the sale of The Telegraph.
Lloyds will assess the bidders before granting access to interal financial detail, according to the report.
"No doubt there will be a great deal of speculation in the months ahead as prospective bidders come forward, but for us it remains business as usual," Telegraph Media Group Chief Executive Nick Hugh wrote in a message to staff.
News UK declined to comment to The Telegraph when reached.
It is expected the bidding will continue through the end of the year and likely to conclude in early February, according to the report.
The estimated sale could vary between $365 million and $1.2 billion, The Telegraph reported.
The Telegraph last sold for about $7 million in 2004.
Eric Mack ✉
Eric Mack has been a writer and editor at Newsmax since 2016. He is a 1998 Syracuse University journalism graduate and a New York Press Association award-winning writer.
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