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April 18, 2008updated 19 Apr 2008 11:57pm

Murdoch scraps News Corp anti-takeover rule

By paulmcnally

News Corp has agreed to scrap its “poison pill” anti-takeover rule, which was put in place by Rupert Murdoch four years ago to help him keep control of his media empire.

If shareholders approve the amendment, it will mean all the directors on the News Corp board will be put up for re-election each year.

The rule was put in place by Murdoch in 2004 to thwart a feared threat from one of News Corp’s largest investors, Liberty Media chairman John Malone.

Since then, News Corp has entered into an asset swap deal with Liberty, which saw Murdoch offload his controlling stake in DirectTV in exchange for Liberty’s stake in News Corp. The deal completed earlier this year.

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