News Corp has beaten analysts expectations with a 65% hike in second-quarter earnings, driven by continued growth at its filmed and cable network divisions, but ad revenues at its publishing division fell dramatically.
The media giant posted net income of $US1.06 billion, or US42 cents a share, for the quarter ended December 31, up from $642 million, or 24 cents a share, a year earlier. Analysts on average expected a profit of 34 cents a share.
Revenue for the second quarter increased 2.4% to $8.98 billion, slightly above analysts' predictions of $8.94 billion.
The second-quarter result comes after a phone-hacking scandal forced News Corp to close its UK tabloid the News of the World.
The closure of the paper has cost the firm a total of $104m, the majority owing to lawyers' fees, in the last six months of 2011.
It also led to a 43% decrease in operating income at the media giant's publishing division. Publishing income fell $162m to $218m, a 43% fall period-on-period.
News Corp blamed lower ad revenues at its Australian newspapers as well as the loss of the News of the World in the UK.
"News Corporation's commitment to delivering value to our stockholders is unwavering, and we will continue to focus on generating superior shareholder returns," chief executive Rupert Murdoch said in a statement today.
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