News Corporation was set to seize control of Dow Jones and its flagship title, The Wall Street Journal, last night after securing sufficient votes from the controlling Bancroft family to win its three-month bid battle.

News Corporation, the media group run by Rupert Murdoch and parent company of The Times, is understood to have secured close to 40 per cent of votes from the Bancrofts. That would give it a clear majority when coupled with institutional shareholder votes, which control about 29 per cent of the stock. Institutions are believed to be broadly in favour of the offer.

A key Bancroft family trust representing about 9 per cent of the voting shares changed its mind yesterday and decided to commit some of its shares to back the takeover. It is thought that some family members decided to vote in favour of the offer after Dow Jones agreed to set up a fund that would cover advisory fees incurred by a handful of investment banks such as Merrill Lynch and law firms. The fees are estimated to be at least $30 million (£14.7 million).

News Corp, which met for a board meeting in New York yesterday, is now expected to proceed with a formal $5 billion offer for Dow Jones.

A spokesman for the Bancroft family insisted that the process of counting up the number of votes in favour of the deal was still ongoing. Their holdings — split between about 34 adult family members — are housed in a complex network of trusts.

While the Bancrofts had set themselves a deadline on Monday to decide whether to vote in favour of a change of control, haggling between family members and their advisers continued until yesterday.

The family, who control 64 per cent of the voting shares in Dow Jones, have been deeply divided over whether to sell to News Corporation. Some members of the family had expressed concerns that the editorial independence of The Wall Street Journal would be jeopardised if it were owned by News Corporation.

In April, News Corp made an offer valuing Dow Jones shares at $60 each, representing a 67 per cent premium to price before the approach was made public.

The Bancroft family initially opposed the offer, but later agreed to reconsider.

It is thought that the Dow Jones board became frustrated with delays arising from meetings between opposing factions of the Bancroft family. As a result, the family allowed the board to lead bid negotiations with News Corp on their behalf.

The Dow Jones board was due to meet last night in New York.

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