The board of Dow Jones will vote today on a $5 billion (£2.4 billion) takeover offer from News Corporation after the two companies reached a tentative pact last night to go ahead with a deal.

Rupert Murdoch, the chairman and chief executive of News Corporation, parent company of The Times and Times Online, met last night with Richard Zannino, the chief executive of Dow Jones, the owner of The Wall Street Journal, to tie down final details of the deal that remains at the $5 billion price tag, equivalent to $60 a share, and first offered in early May.

However, while the boards of the two companies are moving ahead with the deal, News Corporation still has to secure the approval of the Bancroft family, who control 64 per cent of the voting rights in Dow Jones.

The Wall Street Journal reports today that the family is scheduled to meet on Thursday and are expected to be given several days to consider the takeover offer.

It is understood that a schism has developed between members of the Bancroft family over whether to back the acquisition or not.

Christopher Bancroft, a director at Dow Jones and trustee of 15 per cent of the voting rights, is attempting to rally funding to buy up more shares to block the News Corporation deal, and Leslie Hill, another family member and Dow Jones director, had lobbied other family members to meet with potential investors.

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