Dow Jones & Company says a director who represents the interests of the Bancroft family, Michael B. Elefante, has informed its Board of Directors that:
"After a detailed review of the business of Dow Jones and the evolving competitive environment in which it operates, the Family has reached consensus that the mission of Dow Jones may be better accomplished in combination or collaboration with another organisation, which may include News Corporation.
"Accordingly, the Family has advised the Company's Board that it intends to meet with News Corporation to determine whether, in the context of the current or any modified News Corporation proposal, it will be possible to ensure the level of commitment to editorial independence, integrity and journalistic freedom that is the hallmark of Dow Jones.
"The Family also indicated its receptivity to other options that might achieve the same overarching objective."
In that connection, Elefante informed the Board of Directors that representatives of the Bancroft family would be meeting with representatives of News Corporation, including Rupert Murdoch, solely to discuss the issues related to journalistic integrity raised by the News Corporation proposal to acquire all of the outstanding shares of Dow Jones common stock and Class B common stock.
Elefante advised the Board of Directors that there was no assurance the discussions would lead to a proposal satisfactory to the members of the Bancroft family. He further indicated to the Board of Directors that all aspects of News Corporation's proposal, including the price and the terms proposed by News Corporation, could be the subject of subsequent negotiation by the Board and the Bancroft family.
In light of this information, the Board of Directors has determined to consider strategic alternatives available to the Company, including the News Corporation proposal.
The Board of Directors also indicated that a representative of the Board of Directors would be present at the Bancroft family's discussions with Murdoch and News Corporation.
"There can be no assurance that any transaction or other corporate action will result from this exploration of alternatives or that the Board of Directors or the members of the Bancroft family will support any specific proposal received by the Company," the statement concludes.
Dow Jones & Company provides global business news and information services.
Its Consumer Media Group publishes The Wall Street Journal, Barron's, MarketWatch and the Far Eastern Economic Review.
Its Enterprise Media Group includes Dow Jones Newswires, Factiva, Dow Jones Client Solutions, Dow Jones Indexes and Dow Jones Financial Information Services.
Its Local Media Group operates community-based information franchises.
Dow Jones owns 50 per cent of SmartMoney and 33 per cent of Stoxx Ltd and provides news content to CNBC and radio stations in the United States.
Headquartered in New York, Dow Jones & Company employs more than 7000 full time staff worldwide, of whom more than 2600 are news staff and nearly 1900 are business & financial news staff.
The company was founded in 1882 by Charles Dow, Edward Jones and Charles Bergstresser and today, enjoys a leading market share in nearly all of its businesses.
The paid circulation of its prestige Wall Street Journal franchise globally is 2.7m. First published on July 8, 1889, the Wall Street Journal's writers have garnered 31 Pulitzer Prizes over the years.
