21st Century Fox

WorldBrand briefing

AI supplement

Original synthesis to sit alongside the encyclopedia article below. Not part of Wikipedia; verify facts on Wikipedia when precision matters.

21st Century Fox is an American multinational mass media corporation based in New York City, formed through the spin-off of News Corporation's entertainment and media assets from its publishing business. It owned a wide range of media assets including film studios, TV networks, and international satellite TV businesses before most of its assets were acquired by Disney in 2019.

Key moments

June 28, 2013Formed via spin-off from News Corporation
July 1, 2013Started trading on NASDAQ and Australian Securities Exchange
December 14, 2017Disney announced plans to acquire most of its assets for $71.3 billion
July 27, 2018Shareholders of both companies approved the acquisition deal
March 20, 2019Acquisition completed; most assets folded into Disney, remaining assets spun off into new Fox Corporation

21st Century Fox competed with major global media conglomerates during its operation:

The Walt Disney Company: Its largest competitor before acquisition, which later purchased most of its assets. Both competed in film production, TV networks, and family entertainment content.
Comcast (NBCUniversal): Rival in broadcast TV, cable networks, and film distribution, with overlapping sports and news media holdings.
Warner Bros. Discovery: Competed in premium cable content, reality TV, and film libraries.
Paramount Global: Rival in broadcast television, movie production, and streaming services.

Its key competitive advantages included ownership of iconic Marvel character film rights (X-Men, Fantastic Four) prior to the Disney acquisition, leading global news and sports media brands, and a large international TV portfolio through Sky plc stakes.

Competed with Disney, Comcast, Warner Bros. Discovery, Paramount Global
Led superhero film genre with X-Men series before 2019
Owned leading news, sports, and entertainment cable networks

21st Century Fox was a leading American multinational mass media corporation that built substantial brand equity during its years as an independent entity, emerging from the spin-off of News Corporation’s entertainment assets in 2013. Positioned as a pure-play media and entertainment firm, it cultivated strong brand recognition through a diverse portfolio of high-value assets, including major film studios, broadcast and cable TV networks, and international satellite broadcasting operations. Its strategic focus on expanding global content distribution and owning iconic intellectual property allowed it to compete effectively with the world’s largest media conglomerates, building significant value for stakeholders prior to its 2019 acquisition by The Walt Disney Company.

The brand benefited from the legacy of its parent company News Corporation, which had decades of experience in global media, while carving out its own identity as a growth-focused entertainment entity. It made strategic investments to expand its international reach, most notably through increasing its stake in European satellite broadcaster Sky plc, and managed popular intellectual property including the X-Men and Fantastic Four film franchises. Even after the acquisition of most of its assets by Disney, 21st Century Fox remains a well-recognized name in media industry history, remembered for its role in driving major media consolidation trends in the 21st century.

Brand leadership

Score: 85/100

21st Century Fox held strong market leadership across multiple core media segments during its operation, including filmed entertainment, cable news, and international satellite broadcasting. It competed directly with the world’s largest media conglomerates and drove industry trends through bold strategic acquisitions and high-profile content investments, solidifying its status as an influential global media leader.

Audience interaction

Score: 78/100

The brand maintained high levels of consistent engagement with global audiences across its portfolio of news, sports, and entertainment content. Its individual media properties built dedicated, loyal followings across a wide range of demographics, with steady viewership and consumer interaction that supported strong advertising revenue and long-term brand loyalty.

Growth momentum

Score: 80/100

Following its 2013 spin-off from News Corporation, 21st Century Fox pursued aggressive expansion through targeted strategic acquisitions, growing its international footprint and content library consistently. It delivered steady revenue and market share growth across key markets in the years leading up to the Disney acquisition, demonstrating strong upward momentum amid shifting consumer media habits.

Brand stability

Score: 82/100

Backed by strong financial resources and the legacy expertise of its predecessor organization, 21st Century Fox maintained solid operational and brand stability throughout its existence as an independent entity. It navigated industry disruption and competitive pressures effectively, with no major brand-threatening scandals that eroded its market standing before its planned acquisition by Disney.

Brand age

Score: 20/100

As an independent corporate brand, 21st Century Fox operated for just six years, from its 2013 spin-off until the completion of the Disney acquisition in 2019. While its underlying media assets have much longer legacy histories, the 21st Century Fox brand itself had a relatively short lifespan to build long-term brand equity as a standalone entity.

Industry profile

Score: 90/100

21st Century Fox was one of the most high-profile and widely discussed media conglomerates in the global entertainment industry during its operation. Its major strategic moves, most notably the blockbuster acquisition deal with Disney, received extensive global business media coverage, and it exerted significant influence over media industry consolidation and content trends during its tenure.

Global reach

Score: 83/100

21st Century Fox built a broad global media footprint through its ownership of international satellite assets like Sky plc and the widespread global distribution of its filmed entertainment content. It operated media properties across North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, and Latin America, generating meaningful multi-regional revenue and establishing strong global brand presence.

AI can support reasoning around the historical brand value of 21st Century Fox, but any generated figures are illustrative only. For an audited, comprehensive brand value assessment of 21st Century Fox, please contact the World Brand Lab directly.

Overview

Twenty-First Century Fox, Inc.

fate	Acquired by and folded into Disney; certain assets were spun off into Fox Corporation
trade name	21st Century Fox
type	Public
traded as	Nasdaq• FOXA (Class A, 2013–2019) • FOX (Class B, 2013–2019) • TFCFA (Class A, 2019) • TFCF (Class B, 2019)
isin	isin: US90130A1016 isin: US90130A2006
industry	Media Entertainment
predecessor	News Corporation

successors	Disney (Entertainment assets, cable networks and international networks) Fox Corporation (US broadcasting, news and national sports assets)

founded	June 28, 2013

founder	Rupert Murdoch

defunct	March 20, 2019

hq location	1211 Avenue of the Americas

hq location city	New York City, New York

hq location country	U.S.

area served	Worldwide

key people	Rupert Murdoch (executive chairman) Lachlan Murdoch (executive chairman) James Murdoch (CEO) Peter Rice (president)

revenue	US$30.400 billion

revenue year	2018

operating income	US$4.410 billion

income year	2018

net income	US$4.464 billion

net income year	2018

assets	US$53.831 billion

assets year	2018

equity	US$19.564 billion

equity year	2018

num employees	22,400

num employees year	2018

owner	Murdoch family (39% voting power, 2013–2019)

divisions	Fox Entertainment Group Fox Networks Group

subsid	Endemol Shine Group (50%) National Geographic Partners (73%) Star India TrueX

website	21cf.com (archived March 19, 2019)

footnotes	‡R1R‡‡R2R‡

Twenty-First Century Fox, Inc. (did business as 21st Century Fox), abbreviated as 21CF, was an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate based in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. It was formed on June 28, 2013, as the legal successor to News Corporation, while the second News Corporation was formed the same day as a spin-off. 21st Century Fox was the legal successor to News Corporation dealing primarily in the film and television industries. It was the United States' fourth-largest media conglomerate by revenue, up until its acquisition by the Walt Disney Company in 2019. The second News Corporation, which is doing business as News Corp, was spun off from the first News Corporation and holds Rupert Murdoch's print interests and other media assets in Australia (both owned by him and his family via a family trust with 39% interest in each). Murdoch was co-executive chairman, while his sons Lachlan Murdoch and James Murdoch were co-executive chairman and CEO, respectively.

21st Century Fox's assets included the Fox Entertainment Group—owners of the 20th Century Fox film studio (the company's partial namesake), the Fox television network, and a 73% stake in National Geographic Partners—the commercial media arm of the National Geographic Society, among other assets. It also had significant foreign operations, including the prominent Indian television channel operator Star India. The company ranked No. 109 in the 2018 Fortune 500 list of the largest United States corporations by total revenue.[3]

On December 14, 2017, The Walt Disney Company agreed to acquire 21st Century Fox for $52.4 billion in stock.[4] After Comcast mounted an all-cash bid of $65 billion,[5] Disney increased its offer to $71.3 billion in cash and stock.[6] Comcast dropped its bid on July 19, 2018, to instead acquire Sky plc, a British media group in which 21CF held a 39% stake. On July 27, 2018, Disney's offer was approved by shareholders of both companies. The sale covered the majority of 21CF's entertainment assets, including 20th Century Fox, FX Networks, and National Geographic Partners among others; while the sale also included 21CF's regional Fox Sports Networks, Disney was required to sell them within 90 days of the closure of the acquisition to comply with antitrust rulings.[7] The remaining assets, consisting primarily of the Fox and MyNetworkTV networks, and 21CF's local station

History

Formation

21st Century Fox was formed by the splitting of entertainment and media properties from News Corporation. In February 2012, Natalie Ravitz accepted a position to become Rupert Murdoch's Chief of Staff at News Corporation.[9]

News Corporation's board approved the split on May 24, 2013, while shareholders approved the split on June 11, 2013;[10] the company completed the split on June 28 and formally started trading on NASDAQ on July 1.[11][12][13]

Final holdings

21st Century Fox primarily consisted of the media and broadcasting properties that were owned by its predecessor, such as the Fox Entertainment Group and Star India. News Corporation's broadcasting properties in Australia, such as Foxtel and Fox Sports Australia, remained a part of the newly renamed News Corp Australia—which was spun off with the current incarnation of News Corp and was not a part of 21st Century Fox.[17]

Music and radio

Fox Music
Fox News Radio
Fox News Talk

External links

Official website (archived March 19, 2019)
Website for investors

References

Mike Ozanian. New York Yankees Buy Back YES Network For $3.47 Billion Forbes, March 8, 2019, retrieved March 20, 2019^
Twenty-First Century Fox 2018 Annual Report Form (10-K) U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, August 13, 2018, retrieved August 23, 2018^
Fortune 500 Companies 2018: Who Made the List

21st Century Fox

WorldBrand briefing

Brand leadership

Audience interaction

Growth momentum

Brand stability

Brand age

Industry profile

Global reach

History

Formation

Final holdings

Music and radio

External links

References

Subsequent history

Sale to Disney

Studios

TV

Production

Broadcast

Satellite television

Cable

Production

Broadcast

Satellite television

Cable

Internet

Other assets