Sky’s ITV move lands amid Comcast media split

Sky’s proposed move for ITV’s broadcast and streaming arm has landed just as parent company Comcast reshapes its wider media business. Sky has reached terms to buy ITV’s broadcasting and streaming unit in a proposed £1.6 billion transaction, with ITV set to take Sky’s production company Love Productions as part of the wider structure. Days later, Comcast announced plans to spin off NBCUniversal and Sky into a separate publicly traded media company.

The ITV structure includes a performance-based payout estimated at around £200 million and values Love Productions at between roughly £80 million and £120 million. The proposed Comcast spinoff separates its connectivity businesses from a media company built around NBC, Peacock, Universal’s studios and parks, and Sky, with Comcast retaining the option to hold up to a 19.9% stake in the new media company for up to a year after separation.

If both processes complete as outlined, Sky will sit inside a standalone media company with a larger direct role in UK broadcasting and streaming, while ITV’s broadcast and platform assets would also be restructured under the same broader realignment.