00:02Sky, the UK-based TV, internet and mobile phone provider owned by Comcast, has agreed to buy
00:09ITV's media and entertainment arm for up to 1.87 billion euros after a month of talks in a deal
00:16aimed at creating a major competitor to global streaming giants. This is an extraordinary
00:22opportunity to bring together what I would say is two of the most iconic brands in media. So
00:28we've got seven years of history of ITV, creating moments that consumers and viewers love, coming
00:34together with Sky, which is a 30-year track record of innovation, premium drama, quality sport. And
00:41when we put those together, we have the opportunity of creating a UK national streaming champion.
00:47According to the statement, the combined company would bring together free-to-air television,
00:52advertising-funded streaming and subscription TV alongside Sky's broadband, mobile and business
00:59services, giving it a broader range of revenue sources. ITV reaches around 40 million people a
01:06week and has more than 16.5 million monthly digital users. The combined Sky-ITV entity will become part
01:13of NBCUniversal. Following the completion of its split from Comcast, ITV said, ITV News and Sky News
01:21will remain editorially separate.
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