(Reuters) -Starboard Value has filed a shareholder resolution to eliminate the dual-class share structure that allow Rupert Murdoch to control News Corp, the publisher of the Wall Street Journal, the hedge fund said on Monday.
Reuters had exclusively reported last week that Starboard has filed for a shareholder resolution to abolish the stock structure, which gives Murdoch 40% of News Corp’s voting stock despite owning an equity stake of about 14%.
“We believe dual-class share structures are not in the best interests of shareholders and are not reflective of best-in-class corporate governance practices,” Starboard said in a letter to News Corp shareholders at its annual meeting.
Starboard’s move comes as the 93-year old media tycoon is locked in a legal dispute with some of his children to try to ensure that his son Lachlan Murdoch will control News Corp and broadcasting giant Fox Corp after his death.
Last month, News Corp had said it was considering options for Foxtel, its Australia-based subscription television provider, in response to interest from a third party.
(Reporting by Jaspreet Singh in Bengaluru; Editing by Shailesh Kuber and Savio D’Souza)