Murdoch: News Corp. Can Weather Downturn, 'High' On FBN
While acknowledging that ratings have been lackluster, News Corp. CEO Rupert Murdoch said Friday that the company continues to have "high aspirations" for the Fox Business Network.
It's "well on its way to becoming a formidable challenger" to CNBC, Murdoch said--adding that ratings are ahead of where the Fox News Channel was at a comparable point in its history.
That would be 1997, a year after the now-popular channel launched. Fox Business Network turned a year old last week, and has seen its distribution increase to 40 million homes. At last October's launch, it was at 30 million.
At News Corp.'s annual stockholder meeting, Murdoch also said the company will break even this year--and perhaps post a small profit--on its $80 million startup investment in the Big Ten Network.
The sports channel, which focuses on the conference that includes Penn State and Michigan, launched in August 2007. It has been buoyed recently by distribution deals with large cable operators. News Corp. has a near half-stake in the network.
On the financial front, Murdoch echoed other top media executives with some dour thoughts about the economy, but remained optimistic about News Corp.'s ability to weather the difficulties. "We have prepared ourselves well for this day," he said.
He added that he has no illusions about any quick bounceback from the slowdown, saying it "may well turn into a prolonged economic downturn. We cannot fool ourselves into believing otherwise."
Going forward, he said, News Corp. will find growth by increasing subscription-based businesses; expanding in India, Eastern Europe and Asia; and building its digital assets.
He also said the company has a "war chest" of some $5 billion in cash, allowing it to make investments globally that competitors--lacking similar resources--might not do.
News Corp.'s shares have been pummeled along with its peers, trading at around $9.20 Friday, after hitting a 52-week high of $23.86.
Recent MediaDailyNews Articles
-
Aereo Is Not Just For Cord-Cutters May 23, 6:34 p.m.
Are cord-cutters most likely to subscribe to Aereo? Not necessarily, according to early returns. CEO Chet ... -
Cars.com Drops Flag On NASCAR.com Sponsorship May 23, 6:25 p.m.
Cars.com has a need for speed. The site has a deal with Turner to sponsor a ... -
Worldwide Pay TV On The Rise, Big Growth In Asia May 23, 4:17 p.m.
North American pay TV subscribers may continue to show little or no growth for the first ... -
Activision Blizzard's Campaign Wins Grand Effie May 23, 4:12 p.m.
Video game marketer Activision Blizzards’ ad campaign “The Vet and the nOOb” for "Call of Duty: ... -
Mag Bag: Bonnier, Source Interlink Swap Mags May 23, 4:09 p.m.
Bonnier, Source Interlink Swap Mags Enthusiast publisher Bonnier Corp. continued wheeling and dealing this week with ... -
Madison Avenue Is Mad As Hell, March Mad: Takes More, Not Less Network TV May 23, 7:46 a.m.
Demand for network TV advertising, which had been lagging so far this year, surged in April ... -
NY1 Show Goes National May 22, 7:32 p.m.
Time Warner Cable (TWC) will begin distributing a show about Broadway and theater at large to ... -
TV Model: Nets, Stations Split Retrans 50/50 May 22, 6:02 p.m.
Gray Television CFO Jim Ryan suggested that networks may capture more than half of an affiliate’s ... -
Newspaper, Magazine Ad Fortunes Continue To Decline May 22, 5:59 p.m.
The release of fourth-quarter figures for newspaper advertising and first-quarter figures for magazine ad pages earlier ... -
Equifax Taps Dentsu's 360i As Lead Agency May 22, 5:24 p.m.
Data collection company Equifax has selected Dentsu shop 360i to be its lead agency -- for ...
Be the first to comment on "Murdoch: News Corp. Can Weather Downturn, 'High' On FBN"
Leave a Comment