NewsCorp reports 3% slide in revenues as advertising suffers
Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp has suffered a 3 per cent slide in quarterly sales as a result of declining ad revenues and falling subscriptions in the latest quarter.
The publisher of The Times and Wall Street Journal saw revenues contract to £1.3bn for the three months to the end of June, as higher cover prices failed to offset ongoing circulation declines.
The bad numbers come just one year after News Corp split its struggling publishing business from its thriving media and entertainment arm, now owned by 21st Century Fox.
In a statement chief executive Robert Thomson said: “While we are operating in a challenging advertising environment, our results highlight the diversification of our portfolio and our cost discipline, leading to improved free cash flow and a firm foundation for sustained growth."
It wasn’t all bad news for the business however as its book publishing division actually registered a 10 per cent rise in profits over the quarter.