UPDATE: NewsCorp's bid was finally accepted last week by Dow Jones and the Bancroft family, so that the Journal and other key financial properties are now part of the Murdoch empire. Already looking forward to how synergies will be generated out of this deal - WSJ's content on Fox Business News ? Free and advertising funded WSJ website?

We won't know if NewsCorp decision to bid $5bn for Dow Jones was the result of the Group strategy retreat, but the sing and dance with the owners of the Wall Street Journal has been going on for 3 weeks now, maybe even accelerating the transaction between Reuters and Thomson. The Bancroft family - majority shareholders in Dow Jones - are not so far inclined to sell and the deal might take sometime to close or even fall through.

What is interesting though is how some observers quickly discounted this transaction as hubris and the desire of an old school press baron to own a global business newspaper. I think this is clearly underestimating Rupert Murdoch, its strategic insight and ability to execute value creating transactions. There is indeed a lot of value in the Journal, as the quality of its content is not fully leveraged through its current circulation. NewsCorp offers the ability to multiply the distribution outlets in other press magazines, the net and on TV (FoxNewsBusiness anyone?).

Let's not forget that NewsCorp also acquired assets such as MySpace or Jamba. If you are still not convinced that they get it in terms of new media, Web 2.0 and mobile broadband, just check what Rupert Murdoch himself has to say about the media paradigm shift.