News Corporation's president and chief operating officer Chase Carey has said the company's newspaper and publishing division is a critical part of the company's DNA.
In recent weeks, reports have emerged that some News Corp shareholders have floated the idea of spinning off News Corp's newspaper and publishing assets to boost its share price.
Carey said in an exclusive interview with The Australian: “How do you drive historical aspects of the business that are still driving the financials today but also intelligently transition to take advantage of new digital mediums?
“It is a challenge but also an opportunity. Realistically, we are just sort of scratching the surface. A digital platform provides flexibility to do a lot more things, creating new products.
“You have to look at it as a digital platform without boundaries, and the challenge is: how do you monetise it?”
Carey's visit comes as The Australian released its first review of its subscription model, revealing an impressive 40,000 subscriptions to its paywall model since its launch in October last year.
It also follows The Herald Sun's launch of a paywall, the first Australian tabloid newspaper to do so.
Carey acknowledged the challenge the company faced following the phone hacking scandal at the now closed News Of The World publication, but did not go into detail about the case.
Carey's visit, requested by newly appointed chief executive Kim Williams, comes at a time when publishing companies around the world are attempting to change the mindset of readers to pay for content online that has until now been free.
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