What happens if Bancrofts turn down Murdoch's offer?

Douglas MacIntyre writes on the 24/7 Wall Street site about what would happen to Dow Jones & Co. if the Bancroft family that controls the company turns down News Corp. CEO Rupert Murdoch‘s $5 billion offer.

MacIntyre wrote, “Cutting costs at the Journal would probably involve cutting jobs or getting employees to work for less. It would also almost certainly require moving more readers to an internet platform to save money in paper and production.

“Dow Jones might also go for the long ball and buy the FT from Pearson. There have been some indications that the paper could be sold for $1.3 billion. Pearson is now primarily in the education publishing business. Combining the FT and WSJ would offer both properties significant savings in news, sales, and production costs.

“Rejecting Murdoch would be ugly for shareholders, but it might not be the end of the line for the share price.”

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