Ten Network Holdings and its advisor Citi will commence management meetings with potential bidders for the company next week with a potential joint offer by US media giant Discovery Communications and Foxtel the frontrunner.

Ten confirmed on Thursday morning it had appointed investment bank Citi to assess "strategic options", a day after Fairfax Media revealed Discovery and Foxtel were examining a bid.

Ten shares rose 14 per cent to 24.5¢ after the company issued a four-sentence statement in response to the report, which revealed Citi had asked several parties to submit preliminary non-binding proposals before the end of November.

"Ten Network … notes recent press speculation in relation to potential transactions involving the company," the network said in a statement to the ASX. "Ten has appointed Citi to assist in assessing a range of potential strategic options for the company. Ten notes that while a number of potential strategic options have been considered to date, there is no guarantee any transaction will eventuate. Ten will notify the market in the event that further disclosure is required in accordance with its continuous disclosure obligations."

Ten's share price has dived more than 84 per cent since early 2010 due to sliding ratings and financial difficulties, making it vulnerable to a takeover.

Discovery - a $US22 bullion ($25 billion) company that launched in 1985 with the Discovery Channel - has been buying free-to-air television networks across the globe.

It has already made acquisitions in Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Italy and the Middle East, has started a free-to-air channel, Quest, in Britain and has majority control of Eurosport.

Analysts say some of Discovery's popular content on Foxtel's channels could be screened on Ten. Foxtel - which is 50 per cent owned by News Corp - could bring knowledge of the local market and cross-marketing opportunities through News' print and digital titles, analysts say.

It is understood Foxtel, which is jointly owned by Rupert Murdoch's News Corp and Telstra, would take a 14.9 per cent stake in Ten to avoid falling foul of laws aimed at limiting concentration of ownership. Nevertheless, any involvement in Ten by the pay TV provider could still prove politically difficult.

Media analyst Roger Colman said a combination of Discovery and Foxtel with Ten - which posted a full-year loss of $168 million for the 12 months ending August 31 - made sense. He argued any regulatory blocks would be unjustified due to rising competition from US video streaming company Netflix and a joint venture between Fairfax Media and Nine Entertainment Co, whose service Stan will launch early next year.

"Foxtel needs help in terms of operating windows and maximising its own benefit, so you've got to put a pay TV operator like that and a producer of programming together with a network," Mr Colman said. "And now that Netflix is coming in and the Nine Network and Fairfax have joined together, the [Australian Competition and Consumer Commission's] argument against News Corp or Foxtel going into free-to-air is diminished."

Fairfax Media met Ten management in October although sources said the company did not lodge an ­expression of interest with Ten's advisers and had no intention of taking a stake in Ten.

Providence, advised by Deutsche, has since been approached by New York hedge fund Anchorage Capital Group about exploring an alternative proposal. It is understood Ten chief executive Hamish McLennan has met with representatives from Providence, but one source said ­Providence "seems to be just going through the motions".

Ten's rich list-studded share register includes mining magnate Gina Rinehart, News Corp co-chairman Lachlan Murdoch, Crown chairman James Packer and WIN Corporation owner Bruce Gordon. They hold a combined stake of about 40 per cent and have also been sounded out by Ten's advisers. Mr Murdoch, a former Ten chief executive, and Mr Packer are understood to be willing sellers. But Mr Gordon's intentions are less clear.