In a move that could dramatically reshape the British media landscape, Sky is in preliminary discussions to purchase the broadcasting arm of ITV in a deal valued at approximately £1.6 billion.
The talks, confirmed by ITV in a market statement on Friday 7 November 2025, focus on the company's commercial free-to-air TV channels and its streaming service, ITVX. This collection of assets forms ITV's media and entertainment division.
A Potential Market Reshuffle
It is understood that the approach involves Comcast Corporation, the US-based parent company of Sky. A key point of the potential transaction is that it would not include ITV Studios, the production powerhouse behind global hits like Love Island and Britain's Got Talent.
ITV Studios is widely seen as the group's crown jewel, responsible for generating around half of its total revenue and driving its international growth. The potential sale aligns with ITV's stated strategy to simplify its operations and concentrate on this lucrative content production and distribution business.
Strategic Motivations for Both Sides
For Comcast and Sky, acquiring ITV's broadcasting operations would significantly boost their control over the UK's commercial television market. It would merge mass-audience, advertising-supported channels with Sky's established subscription-based model.
The deal would also grant Comcast a major domestic streaming foothold through the ITVX platform, which ITV announced in July had broken even two years ahead of schedule.
ITV, meanwhile, has been facing pressure from a difficult advertising market. Its shares are down around eight per cent this year and have fallen roughly 75 per cent from their 2015 peak. The company's largest shareholder, Liberty Global, recently halved its stake, and ITV has forecast a nine per cent decline in fourth-quarter advertising revenues.
Regulatory Scrutiny and Historical Context
This is not the first time Sky and ITV have been at the negotiating table. In 2006, under the leadership of James Murdoch, Sky purchased a 17.9 per cent stake in ITV for £940 million. Regulators later forced Sky to sell the holding due to competition concerns, meaning any new deal is likely to face intense scrutiny from UK competition authorities.
Morgan Stanley and Robey Warshaw, now part of Evercore, are advising ITV. The two firms previously collaborated on Comcast's £30 billion acquisition of Sky in 2018.
Despite the significant implications, both companies have cautioned that discussions are at a very early stage. ITV reiterated that "there can be no certainty" a transaction will be agreed, while Comcast has declined to comment on the reports.
