It seems that there is some doubt as to whether Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Bin Abdulaziz Alsaud will continue to support the Murdoch family's control of News Corp.
Mystery of missing News Corp votes
A Saudi prince, a disappearing share bloc and an upset voting result has produced the first serious threat to the Murdoch family’s future control of News Corporation and 21st Century Fox.
While only six shareholders turned up to vote at News Corp’s annual meeting in Los Angeles last week, the tight result revealed how much the Murdoch succession depends on one man – Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Bin Abdulaziz Alsaud, whose 6.6 per cent block of voting stock now seems less committed to the Murdoch cause. ...
... So what happened to the missing shares in the proposal to abolish the two classes?
The 87.6 million shares voted against the proposal was 4.3 million shares short of the Murdoch/Alwaleed total. The result was a terrifyingly close margin for a family that has not faced a serious threat to its control in 60 years.
Two theories have emerged in the confusing aftermath of the annual meeting to explain the missing shares.
First, that it was a stuff up. Prince Alwaleed’s executives ticked the Approve box on every proposal and didn’t realise they needed to oppose the share classes resolution. Implausibly, this means News Corp executives who knew the proxy numbers didn’t pick up the phone to call their firmest supporter to ask what was going on. The result was a shambles.
Alternatively, Prince Alwaleed split his vote, with a majority supporting the Murdochs, with whom he could still say he had kept faith in, but a significant stake opposing them.
Whatever the reason, there is no mistaking the message from shareholders.
Excluding the Murdoch and Alwaleed stock, less than 24 per cent of shareholders voted for Rupert Murdoch to remain on the News board, part of an across-the-board vote against directors by institutions.
I don't think that the empire will survive the old man.