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One of the revelations to the controlling shareholder family of Dow Jones & Company (DJ) is it can't allow the company to continue on its current path.

The first steps toward changing direction will be a meeting with Rupert Murdoch's News Corp. (NWS-A) to talk about the $5 billion bid they made for the company. The Bancrofts are also letting it be known that the company is officially in play now, as they said other companies interested could make bids as well.

Michael B. Elefante, a Dow Jones director and representative of the Bancroft family, told directors: "After a detailed review of the business of Dow Jones and the evolving competitive environment in which it operates, the family has reached consensus that the mission of Dow Jones may be better accomplished in combination or collaboration with another organization, which may include News Corp."

The major event that has triggered that particular insight is the announcement of the merger of Reuters Group PLC (RTRSY) and Thomson Corp., which would make them even a more formidable competitor than before.

In the aftermath of family discussions, a number of family members have come to the conclusion that there must be changes made and alternatives considered.

The biggest questions are if the company is large enough to compete globally, and its response to the continual migration of searchers for financial and business news to the Internet.

Supposedly the biggest concern of some of the Bancroft family is maintaining the commitment to the editorial independence and freedom of reporting that has been part of the companies reputation over the years. Murdoch has said all along that he's commited to maintaining that as part of the company's operations.

At the discussions with Rupert Murdoch and representatives of News Corp., and the Bancroft family, will be a member of the Dow Jones board. This reveals that the board will now start getting more involved in the process of potential deal for the company, or other offers as well.

The premium that Murdoch offered was 67 percent over the share price at the time of the bid, which was made to narrow down the field of potential competitive bids for the company. Most that would make a good fit have said they're not interested.

I personally think the deal would be a good one for Dow Jones, whose properties include The Wall Street Journal, MarketWatch, Factiva, Barron's and Dow Jones Newsletter. The reach and scale of the News Corp. empire, along with the upcoming launch of their cable business news channel will offer up all sorts of platforms for the content Dow Jones has to be offered up. This should definitely go forward.