Comcast, the biggest cable operator in the US, has offered to pay $US31 billion ($A43 billion) to buy Sky, challenging Rupert Murdoch's 21st Century Fox and Bob Iger's Walt Disney for the European pay-TV jewel.
Comcast, a $US184 billion media giant which owns NBC and Universal Pictures, said it was offering STG12.50 per share, significantly higher than the STG10.75 per share agreed by Fox.
Present in 23 million homes across Europe and known for its technological innovation, Britain's Sky has already agreed to be sold to Murdoch's Fox but the takeover has been delayed by concerns over the media tycoon's influence in Britain.
That has complicated a separate $US52 billion deal by Disney to buy Fox assets including Sky.
"Sky and Comcast are a perfect fit: we are both leaders in creating and distributing content," Comcast Chief Executive Officer Brian L. Roberts, 58, said. "We think Sky is an outstanding company."
The latest round of major deals indicates the pressures being felt by traditional cable television networks which have been losing customers to streaming services like Netflix and Amazon.com.
Comcast said it had not yet engaged with Sky over the proposal and nearly 90 minutes after the statement came out, Sky was yet to respond.
"We would like to own the whole of Sky and we will be looking to acquire over 50 per cent of the Sky shares," Comcast CEO Roberts said.
"Innovation is at the heart of what we do: by combining the two companies we create significant opportunities for growth," he said.
Sky's chairman is Murdoch's son James, who is the chief executive of 21st Century Fox, so Comcast will have to gain the support of the independent shareholders for its better offer if it does not make a hostile bid.
Fox agreed to buy the 61 per cent of Sky it did not already own in December 2016 but the takeover has been repeatedly held up by regulatory concerns that Murdoch controls too much media in Britain.
