AT&T Inc. is nearing a deal to sell TMZ to Fox Corp. , after a year of talks that involved persuading Harvey Levin to sign off on a sale of the gossip news platform he co-founded, according to people familiar with the matter.
The terms being negotiated would value TMZ, which includes a popular website and daily television show, at between $100 million and $125 million, the people said. While the on-again, off-again talks have heated up recently, people on both sides stressed there is no guarantee a deal will be reached.
Fox already has deep ties to TMZ and Mr. Levin. Its local TV stations carry the daily “TMZ on TV” program, and Mr. Levin also has produced and hosted a show for Fox News called “OBJECTified.”
Despite the long-term relationship, Mr. Levin and his team needed to be persuaded on supporting a sale to Fox, according to people at both Fox and AT&T’s WarnerMedia unit that oversees TMZ.
Among Mr. Levin’s concerns was how much editorial control he would have at Fox. Mr. Levin has very little interference from WarnerMedia executives, people close to WarnerMedia said.
