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Fox Interactive Media is primed to go public. There's no word yet on parent company News Corp's plans for FIM, but all its ducks are in a row:

As GigaOM blogger Robert Young wrote last week, News Corp isn't in the mood to spend its cash on big purchases — but there are still some hefty tech-media startups worth buying. Young says that Murdoch prefers buying companies with cash over paying with stock, which would dilute his ownership. And the best way to raise enough cash for a huge purchase (like — ugh — YouTube) is by taking Fox Interactive public and using its IPO capital.

Ross Levinsohn (pictured) has a firm hand on the steering wheel. The FIM chief is always ready to give the right quote, demonstrating a no-nonsense business perspective. His commentary (such as a recent retort to Yahoo CEO Terry Semel's sour grapes about losing the MySpace search deal) demonstrates his command of public relations narrative. He's not a wild visionary — just a smart man making smart deals (like the $500 million purchase of MySpace, now vindicated by a $900 million deal with Google). All this would-be CEO needs is the title.

Finally, Levinsohn tells BusinessWeek that Fox Interactive is hiring a global staff, investing in online video, and generally "ramping up." Granted, when BusinessWeek says buy, it's time to sell. But they may have hit this one on the mark — Fox Interactive is too strong a brand to tie down. It's time to spin off.

Fox to Make MySpace More Spacious [BusinessWeek]
Why Murdoch Won't buy YouTube [GigaOM]