// BBC BUSINESS NEWS — FINANZA
Nandy 'minded to intervene' in Sky's £1.6bn takeover of ITV entertainment arm
Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy has said she is "minded to intervene" in the proposed £1.6bn deal for Sky to buy ITV's media and entertainment division.
Nandy said there were reasonable grounds to believe the deal could affect free expression in the media and the variety of Britain's news landscape.
Sky said it would "carefully consider" a letter from the culture secretary and "engage constructively" with the review into the deal.
"We remain confident that bringing Sky and ITV's media and entertainment business together will create a stronger British media," it said.
ITV welcomed the letter and said the deal would help it "compete with global streaming platforms, benefiting viewers, advertisers and the UK creative industries".
The two companies announced in July that Sky had agreed to buy ITV's broadcasting business, including its free-to-air TV channels and the ITV X streaming service.
The deal does not include ITV's production arm, ITV Studios, which makes popular programmes such as Love Island and I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here.
It would give Sky access to millions more viewers, while bosses hope it would help both compete with streaming giants such as Netflix.
What Sky buying ITV could mean for your favourite shows
But Nandy has told Sky and ITV that she is considering issuing a public interest intervention notice (PIIN) to the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) and regulator Ofcom, forcing an investigation into the tie-up.