Rupert Murdoch has plans to sell several of News Corp’s local US television stations in order to buy back an 18 percent shareholder stake from billionaire John Malone, The Australian reported Thursday.

While the deal is not finalized, Murdoch said News Corp. was “a little closer to talking about that with Mr. Malone more meaningfully.” Murdoch has expressed interest in Malone's stake since he accumulated the shares in November 2004.

Local TV stations are generating less and less revenue, Murdoch explained. He told Australian media that News Corp. will be “certainly expanding very, very strongly online businesses. We may well be starting new ones in Australia, everywhere.”

He did not specify which stations might be sold.

Source: The Australian (through I Want Media)