Shares in News Corp climbed 3.76% in Sydney to A$11.03 as news emerged that the other remaining bidder, US telecoms giant SBC, has pulled out of negotiations with General Motors, owner of DirecTV parent Hughes Electronics.
SBC and GM had been in discussions about a deal, but talks broke down because SBC only wanted to buy DirecTV and not Hughes.
Murdoch first made a bid for DirecTV 18 months ago but was beaten by an $18.3bn (£11.63bn) bid by EchoStar, DirecTV's smaller rival. The deal was eventually blocked by US competition authorities, clearing the way for Murdoch to restart talks with GM.
A successful bid for DirecTV would consolidate Murdoch's global satellite network, which already has operations in the UK with BSkyB; Asia with Star TV in India, China, Taiwan and Hong Kong; Japan; and Latin America.
Last week, Murdoch strengthened News Corp's financial position with the news that it has given John Malone's Liberty Media the option to buy $500m of its stock, which could take Liberty's 18% holding in News Corp to 20%.
Last month, News Corp's stock fell after a report suggested that it was set to make a $7bn bid for DirecTV, amid fears that Murdoch could be prepared to pay too much for the satellite TV firm.
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