Culture Secretary orders CMA and Ofcom review of Sky bid for ITV entertainment assets
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What happened
Lisa Nandy directed the CMA and Ofcom to scrutinize Sky's proposed £1.6 billion purchase of ITV's media and entertainment division and to report their findings by 2027-01-27. Nandy also said the government will bring forward new streaming legislation and linked that policy work to concerns raised by the deal.
Why it matters
The intervention puts a UK media transaction under formal competition and plurality review and signals that ministers may use sector legislation alongside merger scrutiny. That can alter deal timing, conditions, valuation, and the operating assumptions for broadcasters and streaming platforms in the UK.
UK Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy has directed the Competition and Markets Authority and Ofcom to examine Sky's proposed £1.6 billion acquisition of ITV's media and entertainment division. She asked the regulators to report on competition and free-speech effects, and paired the intervention with plans for new streaming legislation. The move turns a corporate transaction into an active regulatory and policy test for the UK media market.
Watch for
CMA confirmation by 2026-11-08 that it has opened the requested merger review and published scope or timetable details Ofcom statement by 2026-11-08 setting out the media plurality or free-expression questions it will examine in the Sky-ITV case Department for Culture, Media and Sport publication by 2026-11-08 of terms of reference, intervention notice, or legislative outline on streaming rules Sky Group or ITV plc RNS filing by 2026-11-08 disclosing revised transaction timing, remedies discussions, or conditions linked to the review
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