SOUTHERN Cross Media has released a statement to the ASX confirming it is "reviewing a number of strategic options" after it emerged the company had held preliminary talks about a $4 billion merger with Nine Entertainment Co. The statement is a response to a report in The Weekend Australian that Nine and Southern Cross, which broadcasts the Ten signal in regional Australia, have discussed a TV union as Communications Minister Stephen Conroy gets set to put to cabinet revolutionary rule changes that would herald a shake-up of the media map.