Credit: Aditya Vyas via Unsplash
News Corp reported a 2% rise in revenue to $2.14 billion for the September quarter, led by strength at Dow Jones and Digital Real Estate Services segments, and bolstered by digital and AI-related business.
Net income from continuing operations was $150 million, up from $149 million last year.
News Media revenue was up 1% to $US545 million, driven by higher circulation and subscriptions.
Advertising revenue at News Media fell 4%, primarily due to lower print and digital advertising revenues at News Corp Australia, partly offset by higher advertising revenues at the New York Post.
Digital revenue represented 38% of the news media segment, flat compared to the prior year, and was 36% of the combined newspaper mastheads.
Digital subscribers at News Corp Australia at the end of September were 1,162,000 (993,000 for news mastheads), compared to 1,127,000 (979,000 for news mastheads) in the prior year.
“We believe our shares are undervalued, given the sum of our valuable parts and our profit trajectory, and we will continue to focus on ways and means to maximise shareholder value,” CEO Robert Thomson said.
“It is also patently clear that the value of IP in the age of AI is misconceived. Information and sophisticated data are the essence of AI, and without these essential ingredients, AI is but empty, ignorant infrastructure. Electricity without alacrity. Buildings without billings. Chips without chops.
“Thankfully, we are seeing a positive trend with both enlightened companies and wise courts deciding that creativity and content must not be stolen, but purchased for a reasonable price. Courtship and courts are both crucial components of our strategy.
“Our wooing has gained increasing traction, and we expect to announce further partnerships in the near future, which we expect to have a positive impact on our results.”
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