Murdoch deal could help raise price for Time Warner

Should Rupert Murdoch’s 21st Century Fox choose to raise its $80 billion offer for Time Warner, it now has significantly more cash to do so.

The company announced Friday that it was selling its Italian and German pay-television businesses to the British Sky Broadcasting Group for more than $9 billion, valuable cash that could help bolster its pursuit of Time Warner, which has so far spurned any takeover offer.

Analysts and investors said the deal could change the dynamics of 21st Century Fox’s quest to win over Time Warner and create an enormous media conglomerate with prized assets as diverse as HBO, Warner Bros., Fox News Channel and the 20th Century Fox film and TV studios living under one roof.

Time Warner has argued so far that the initial $85-a-share takeover offer advanced by Murdoch was too low, and some analysts and investors have speculated that the bid would have to go above $100 a share to clinch a deal.

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