Sky-ITV merger: Nandy considers updating plurality rules for streaming era

UK Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy said on October 15, 2026, that she is "minded to intervene" in Comcast-owned Sky's £1.6 billion ($2.1 billion) takeover of ITV's TV networks and streaming assets. Nandy cited public interest considerations including the need for free expression of opinion in news media, a sufficient plurality of views in each market, and the availability throughout the UK of a wide range of broadcasting and on-demand programmes.

Nandy stressed she has not made a final decision. Both Sky and ITV have five days to respond to her notice. Her next step would be to potentially issue an intervention notice, which would mean Ofcom assessing the deal.

The deal would combine Britain's largest pay-TV operator with its largest commercial free-to-air broadcaster, concentrating news and entertainment reach in one company. Sky CEO Dana Strong called it "a defining moment for British media." ITV CEO Carolyn McCall described it as creating "a U.K. champion with the scale and resources to better compete with global streaming platforms." Critics have raised concerns about the merged entity's market power, and the Labour government has cited concentration worries.

Nandy is also considering bringing forward legislation to update the plurality consideration to include streaming. She said the existing legislation "was drafted at a time where viewing was largely via broadcast linear channels." The proposed update raises the question of whether streaming-era media consolidation is being judged by outdated standards.

This is not the first time Nandy has taken this procedural step. She similarly said she was "minded to intervene" during the Paramount-Warner-Skydance deal stage. That deal was subsequently waved through and completed in the U.S. the prior week. The precedent does not determine the outcome here, but it shows that a "minded to intervene" notice is not a block.

The government's willingness to intervene — and to consider rewriting plurality rules for the streaming age — signals that UK media consolidation will face heightened political scrutiny. The implications touch what viewers can watch, who owns the news, and how global streaming competition is balanced against domestic plurality. Whether Nandy issues a formal intervention notice, and whether Ofcom's assessment blocks, conditions, or clears the deal, remains unknown.