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Murdoch's News Corp profits slashed by half

Advertising revenue and falling newspaper circulation hit earnings

Angela Jameson
Wednesday 06 May 2015 12:47 BST
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Two Sun front pages from the last week
Two Sun front pages from the last week

Rupert Murdoch's News Corp, which publishes The Sun, The Times and the Wall Street Journal, saw net profits more than halve in the three months to March 31, due to declining advertising revenues and falling newspaper circulations.

Net income attributable to shareholders dropped by 52% to $23 million (£15.1 million) for the quarter to the end of March. Total revenues for the global group slipped 1% to $2.06 billion.

News Corp has bolstered its business in the online housing market sector, by buying a company called Move. As a result of the deal, the digital real estate services sector saw a 67% increase in revenues.

Book publishing, including Harper Collins, also had a good quarter with a 14% increase in revenues and a 6% increase in profits to $56 million.

The publisher has had success with American Sniper, the autobiography of the late Chris Kyle, which was made into a Hollywood blockbuster starring Bradley Cooper.

Newspapers continued to struggle with revenue in News Corp’s news and information division falling 9% overall, as ad revenue declined 12%, and circulation and subscription revenue fell 6%.

News Corp said it spent around $15 million in the quarter in costs related to the phone-hacking scandal at the News of the World, down from the $20 million charge at the same point in 2014.

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