News Corporation (abbreviated News Corp.), also variously known as News Corporation Limited, was an American
multinational mass media
Mass media refers to a diverse array of media technologies that reach a large audience via mass communication. The technologies through which this communication takes place include a variety of outlets.
Broadcast media transmit information ...
corporation controlled by media mogul
Rupert Murdoch
Keith Rupert Murdoch ( ; born 11 March 1931) is an Australian-born American business magnate. Through his company News Corp, he is the owner of hundreds of local, national, and international publishing outlets around the world, including ...
and headquartered at
1211 Avenue of the Americas
1211 Avenue of the Americas (also known as the News Corp. Building) is an International style skyscraper on Sixth Avenue in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. Formerly called the ''Celanese Building'', it was completed in 1973 as part of th ...
in New York City. Prior to its split in 2013, it was the world's largest media company in terms of total assets and the world's fourth largest media group in terms of revenue, and News Corporation had become a media powerhouse since its inception, dominating the news, television, film, and print industries.
News Corporation was a
publicly traded company listed on
NASDAQ
The Nasdaq Stock Market () (National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations Stock Market) is an American stock exchange based in New York City. It is the most active stock trading venue in the US by volume, and ranked second ...
. Formerly incorporated in
Adelaide
Adelaide ( ) is the capital city of South Australia, the state's largest city and the fifth-most populous city in Australia. "Adelaide" may refer to either Greater Adelaide (including the Adelaide Hills) or the Adelaide city centre. The ...
,
South Australia
South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...
, the company was re-incorporated under
Delaware General Corporation Law
The Delaware General Corporation Law (Title 8, Chapter 1 of the Delaware Code) is the statute of the Delaware Code that governs corporate law in the U.S. state of Delaware. Adopted in 1899, the statute has since seen Delaware become the most i ...
after a majority of shareholders approved the move on November 12, 2004. News Corporation was headquartered at
1211 Avenue of the Americas
1211 Avenue of the Americas (also known as the News Corp. Building) is an International style skyscraper on Sixth Avenue in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. Formerly called the ''Celanese Building'', it was completed in 1973 as part of th ...
, New York, in the newer 1960s–1970s corridor of the
Rockefeller Center complex.
On June 28, 2012, after concerns from shareholders in response to its
recent scandals and to "unlock even greater long-term shareholder value", founder
Rupert Murdoch
Keith Rupert Murdoch ( ; born 11 March 1931) is an Australian-born American business magnate. Through his company News Corp, he is the owner of hundreds of local, national, and international publishing outlets around the world, including ...
announced that News Corporation's assets would be split into two publicly traded companies,
one oriented towards media, and the other towards publishing. The formal split was completed on June 28, 2013; where the present News Corp. was renamed
21st Century Fox and consists primarily of media outlets, while a new
News Corp
News Corporation, stylized as News Corp, is an American mass media and publishing company headquartered in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. The second incarnation of the original News Corporation, it was formed on June 28, 2013, following a ...
was formed to take on the publishing and Australian broadcasting assets.
Its major holdings at the time of the split were
News Limited
News Corp Australia is an Australian media conglomerate and wholly owned subsidiary of the American News Corp. One of Australia's largest media conglomerates, News Corp Australia employs more than 8,000 staff nationwide and approximately 3,000 ...
(a group of newspaper publishers in Murdoch's native Australia),
News International
News Corp UK & Ireland Limited (trading as News UK, formerly News International and NI Group) is a British newspaper publisher, and a wholly owned subsidiary of the American mass media conglomerate News Corp. It is the current publisher of ...
(a newspaper publisher in the United Kingdom, whose properties include ''
The Times
''The Times'' is a British Newspaper#Daily, daily Newspaper#National, national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its s ...
'', ''
The Sun'', and the now-defunct ''
News of the World
The ''News of the World'' was a weekly national red top tabloid newspaper published every Sunday in the United Kingdom from 1843 to 2011. It was at one time the world's highest-selling English-language newspaper, and at closure still had one o ...
'' (the subject of a
phone hacking scandal that led to its closure in July 2011),
Dow Jones & Company
Dow Jones & Company, Inc. is an American publishing firm owned by News Corp and led by CEO Almar Latour.
The company publishes '' The Wall Street Journal'', '' Barron's'', ''MarketWatch'', ''Mansion Global'', ''Financial News'' and '' Private ...
(an American publisher of financial news outlets, including ''
The Wall Street Journal
''The Wall Street Journal'' is an American business-focused, international daily newspaper based in New York City, with international editions also available in Chinese and Japanese. The ''Journal'', along with its Asian editions, is published ...
''), the book publisher
HarperCollins
HarperCollins Publishers LLC is one of the Big Five English-language publishing companies, alongside Penguin Random House, Simon & Schuster, Hachette, and Macmillan. The company is headquartered in New York City and is a subsidiary of News C ...
, and the
Fox Entertainment Group (then owners of the
20th Century Fox
20th Century Studios, Inc. (previously known as 20th Century Fox) is an American film production company headquartered at the Fox Studio Lot in the Century City area of Los Angeles. As of 2019, it serves as a film production arm of Walt Disn ...
film studio and the
Fox Broadcasting Company television network).
History
News Corp was created in 1980 by
Rupert Murdoch
Keith Rupert Murdoch ( ; born 11 March 1931) is an Australian-born American business magnate. Through his company News Corp, he is the owner of hundreds of local, national, and international publishing outlets around the world, including ...
, as a
holding company
A holding company is a company whose primary business is holding a controlling interest in the securities of other companies. A holding company usually does not produce goods or services itself. Its purpose is to own shares of other companies ...
for
News Limited
News Corp Australia is an Australian media conglomerate and wholly owned subsidiary of the American News Corp. One of Australia's largest media conglomerates, News Corp Australia employs more than 8,000 staff nationwide and approximately 3,000 ...
. News Limited was created in 1923 in Adelaide by
James Edward Davidson, funded by the Collins House mining empire for the purpose of publishing anti-union propaganda; subsequently the controlling interest was bought by ''
The Herald and Weekly Times
The Herald and Weekly Times Pty Ltd (HWT) is a newspaper publishing company based in Melbourne, Australia. It is owned and operated by News Pty Ltd, which as News Ltd, purchased the HWT in 1987.
Newspapers
The HWT's newspaper interests date b ...
''. In 1949, Sir
Keith Murdoch
Sir Keith Arthur Murdoch (12 August 1885 – 4 October 1952) was an Australian journalist, businessman and the father of Rupert Murdoch, the current Executive chairman for News Corporation and the chairman of Fox Corporation.
Early life
Murdo ...
took control of ''The Adelaide News''. When he died in 1952, his son Rupert inherited a controlling interest in an Adelaide afternoon tabloid, ''
The News''. News Limited operates today as News Corporation's Australian brand, ''
The Australian
''The Australian'', with its Saturday edition, ''The Weekend Australian'', is a broadsheet newspaper published by News Corp Australia since 14 July 1964.Bruns, Axel. "3.1. The active audience: Transforming journalism from gatekeeping to gatewa ...
'' operating out of
Surry Hills, in Sydney.
Expansion into the United States
News Ltd. made its first acquisition in the United States in 1973, when it purchased the ''
San Antonio Express and News'' (the two papers merged in 1984). Soon afterwards it founded the ''
National Star'', a
supermarket tabloid, and in 1976 it purchased the ''
New York Post
The ''New York Post'' (''NY Post'') is a conservative daily tabloid newspaper published in New York City. The ''Post'' also operates NYPost.com, the celebrity gossip site PageSix.com, and the entertainment site Decider.com.
It was establishe ...
'' from
Dorothy Schiff for $31 million.
In 1984, News Corp acquired the ''
Chicago Sun-Times'' from
Field Enterprises
Field Enterprises, Inc. was a private holding company that operated from the 1940s to the 1980s, founded by Marshall Field III and others, whose main assets were the '' Chicago Sun'' and ''Parade'' magazine. For various periods of time, Field Ente ...
(later sold in 1986 to the
American Publishing Company subsidiary of Canada-based
Hollinger Inc.
Hollinger Inc. was a Canadian media company based in Toronto which was established by businessman Conrad Black. At one time, the company was the third-largest media empire in the world. The company went bankrupt in 2007.
History
Hollinger Inc ...
) for $90 million and ''
Travel Weekly
Travel Weekly Group Ltd is a UK publishing and events company serving the travel industry, principally travel agents, tour operators and other suppliers.
Its main brand is weekly business publication ''Travel Weekly'' and its associated onlin ...
'' and other trade magazines from
Ziff Davis
Ziff Davis, Inc. is an American digital media and internet company. First founded in 1927 by William Bernard Ziff Sr. and Bernard George Davis, the company primarily owns technology-oriented media websites, online shopping-related services, a ...
. In March 1985, News Corp bought a 50% stake in TCF Holdings, the holding company of the movie studio
20th Century Fox
20th Century Studios, Inc. (previously known as 20th Century Fox) is an American film production company headquartered at the Fox Studio Lot in the Century City area of Los Angeles. As of 2019, it serves as a film production arm of Walt Disn ...
from Marc Rich for $162 million, and later acquired the remaining stake from
Marvin Davis in September for $325 million.
Two months after the acquisition of the 50% stake in TCF Holdings, on May 6, 1985, News Corp announced it was buying the
Metromedia
Metromedia (also often MetroMedia) was an American media company that owned radio and television stations in the United States from 1956 to 1986 and controlled Orion Pictures from 1988 to 1997. Metromedia was established in 1956 after the DuMo ...
television stations and its syndication arm Metromedia Producers Corporation from
John Kluge
John Werner Kluge (; September 21, 1914September 7, 2010) was a German-American entrepreneur who became a television industry mogul in the United States. At one time he was the richest person in the U.S.
Early life and education
Kluge was bo ...
for $3.5 billion, setting the stage for the launch of a fourth U.S.
commercial broadcasting television network. On September 4, 1985, Murdoch became a
naturalized citizen
Naturalization (or naturalisation) is the legal act or process by which a non-citizen of a country may acquire citizenship or nationality of that country. It may be done automatically by a statute, i.e., without any effort on the part of the i ...
to satisfy the legal requirement that only United States citizens could own American television stations. In 1986, the Metromedia deal was completed, and the
Fox Broadcasting Company, simply known as Fox, launched on October 9, with
Joan Rivers
Joan Alexandra Molinsky (June 8, 1933 – September 4, 2014), known professionally as Joan Rivers, was an American comedian, actress, producer, writer and television host. She was noted for her blunt, often controversial comedic persona—heavi ...
' ''
The Late Show'' as its late-night program, it would later air prime-time programming starting in April 1987.
Expansion and consolidation
In 1986 and 1987, News Corp (through subsidiary
News International
News Corp UK & Ireland Limited (trading as News UK, formerly News International and NI Group) is a British newspaper publisher, and a wholly owned subsidiary of the American mass media conglomerate News Corp. It is the current publisher of ...
) moved to adjust the production process of its British newspapers, over which the printing unions had long maintained a highly restrictive grip.
[Revolution on Fleet Street]
''Time'' magazine, August 21, 1996. A number of senior Australian media moguls were brought into Murdoch's powerhouse, including John Dux, who was managing director of the ''
South China Morning Post
The ''South China Morning Post'' (''SCMP''), with its Sunday edition, the ''Sunday Morning Post'', is a Hong Kong-based English-language newspaper owned by Alibaba Group. Founded in 1903 by Tse Tsan-tai and Alfred Cunningham, it has remaine ...
''. This led to a confrontation with the printing unions
National Graphical Association and
Society of Graphical and Allied Trades. The move of News International's London operation to
Wapping in the East End resulted in nightly battles outside the new plant. Delivery vans and depots were frequently and violently attacked.
[ Ultimately the unions capitulated.
In 1987, News Corp acquired the book publisher Harper and Row for $300 million, and later acquired the British book publisher ]William Collins, Sons
William Collins, Sons (often referred to as Collins) was a Scottish printing and publishing company founded by a Presbyterian schoolmaster, William Collins, in Glasgow in 1819, in partnership with Charles Chalmers, the younger brother of Tho ...
in 1989 for $721 million, who later merged with Harper to form HarperCollins
HarperCollins Publishers LLC is one of the Big Five English-language publishing companies, alongside Penguin Random House, Simon & Schuster, Hachette, and Macmillan. The company is headquartered in New York City and is a subsidiary of News C ...
that same year.
In 1988, News Corp acquired the Philadelphia-based Triangle Publications, publisher of the magazines '' TV Guide'', '' Seventeen'', and the '' Daily Racing Form'' for $3 billion. To raise money, the trade publications were sold to Reed International.
By 1992, News Corp had gotten huge debts, which forced it to sell many of the American magazine interests it had acquired in the mid-1980s to K-III Communications, as well spinning off long-held Australian magazines interests as Pacific Magazines. Much of this debt came from its stake in the Sky Television satellite network in the UK, which incurred massive losses in its early years of operation, which (like many of its business interests) was heavily subsidised with profits from its other holdings until it was able to force rival satellite operator BSB to accept a merger on its terms in 1990. (The merged company, BSkyB
Sky UK Limited is a British broadcaster and telecommunications company that provides television and broadband Internet services, fixed line and mobile telephone services to consumers and businesses in the United Kingdom. It is a subsidiary of ...
, has dominated the British pay-TV market since.)
In 1993, News Corp acquired a 63.6% stake of the Hong Kong-based STAR TV satellite network from Pearson PLC for over $500 million, followed by the purchase of the remaining 36.4% in July 1995. Murdoch declared that:
In 1995, the Fox network became the object of scrutiny from the Federal Communications Commission
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that regulates communications by radio, television, wire, satellite, and cable across the United States. The FCC maintains jurisdi ...
(FCC) when it was alleged that its Australian base made Murdoch's ownership of Fox illegal. The FCC, however, ruled in Murdoch's favor, stating that his ownership of Fox was in the public's best interests. It was also noted that the stations themselves were owned by a separate company whose chief shareholder was a U.S. citizen, Murdoch, although nearly all of the stations' equity was controlled by News Corp. In the same year, News Corporation announced a deal with MCI Communications
MCI Communications Corp. (originally Microwave Communications, Inc.) was a telecommunications company headquartered in Washington, D.C. that was at one point the second-largest long-distance provider in the United States.
MCI was instrumen ...
to develop a major news website as well as funding a conservative news magazine, '' The Weekly Standard''. In the same year, News Corp launched the Foxtel pay television network in Australia in a partnership with Telstra
Telstra Group Limited is an Australian telecommunications company that builds and operates telecommunications networks and markets voice, mobile, internet access, pay television and other products and services. It is a member of the S&P/ASX 2 ...
and Publishing and Broadcasting Limited.
On July 17, 1996, News Corporation announced that it would acquire television production and broadcasting company New World Communications (who acquired a 20% stake in 1994 for $200 million), for $2.48 billion in stock and was completed on January 22, 1997.
On October 7, 1996, the Fox Entertainment Group launched the Fox News Channel, a 24-hour cable news network to compete against Time Warner's rival channel CNN.
In 1999, News Corporation significantly expanded its music holdings in Australia by acquiring the controlling share in a leading Australian-based label, Michael Gudinski's Mushroom Records
Mushroom Records was an Australian flagship record label, founded in 1972 in Melbourne. It published and distributed many successful Australian artists and expanded internationally, until it was merged with Festival Records in 1998. Festival ...
, merging it with already held Festival Records to create Festival Mushroom Records (FMR). Both Festival and FMR were managed by Rupert Murdoch's son James Murdoch
James Rupert Jacob Murdoch (born 13 December 1972) is a British-American businessman, the younger son of media mogul Rupert Murdoch, and was the chief executive officer (CEO) of 21st Century Fox from 2015 to 2019.
He was the chairman and CEO f ...
for several years.
Also mid 1999, '' The Economist'' reported that News Corp paid comparatively lower taxes, and Newscorp Investments specifically had made £11.4 billion ($20.1 billion) in profits over the previous 11 years but had not paid net corporation tax. It also reported that after an examination of the available accounts, Newscorp could normally have been expected to pay corporate tax of approximately $350 million. The article explained that in practice, the corporation's complex structure, international scope, and use of offshore tax havens allowed News Corporation to pay minimal taxes.
Development since 2000
In late 2003, News Corp acquired a 34% stake in Hughes Electronics
Hughes Electronics Corporation was formed in 1985 when Hughes Aircraft was sold by the Howard Hughes Medical Institute to General Motors for $5.2 billion. The surviving parts of Hughes Electronics are today known as The DirecTV Group.
On June ...
(now DirecTV Group, operator of the largest American satellite TV system, from General Motors for US$6 billion. DirecTV was sold to Liberty Media in 2008 in exchange for its stake in News Corporation.
In January 2005, shortly after reincorporation in the United States, News Corporation announced that it was buying out Fox Entertainment Group. The manoeuvre delisted Fox from the New York Stock Exchange
The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE, nicknamed "The Big Board") is an American stock exchange in the Financial District of Lower Manhattan in New York City. It is by far the world's largest stock exchange by market capitalization of its listed ...
; Fox had traded on the NYSE under the ticker FOX.
In 2004, Murdoch set aside $2 billion and handpicked a team of young executives to look at possible ways to use the Web as a distribution platform. That team was composed of four rising stars: Ross Levinsohn, Adam Bain, Travis Katz, and Michael Kirby. The four became the backbone of what would become News Corp's digital division, Fox Interactive Media.
Shortly after, in July 2005, News Corporation purchased the social networking website Myspace for $580 million. News Corporation had beat out Viacom by offering a higher price for the website, and the purchase was seen as a good investment at the time. Of the $580 million purchase price, approximately $327 million has been attributed to the value of Myspace according to the financial adviser fairness opinion. Within a year, Myspace had tripled in value from its purchase price.
In February 2007, Murdoch announced at the McGraw-Hill Media Summit that the Fox Entertainment Group would launch a new business news channel later in the year, which would compete directly against rival network CNBC. Murdoch explained that the channel would be more "business-friendly" than CNBC, because he felt that they "leap on every scandal, or what they think is a scandal." In July 2007, News Corp. reached a deal to acquire Dow Jones & Company
Dow Jones & Company, Inc. is an American publishing firm owned by News Corp and led by CEO Almar Latour.
The company publishes '' The Wall Street Journal'', '' Barron's'', ''MarketWatch'', ''Mansion Global'', ''Financial News'' and '' Private ...
, owners of ''The Wall Street Journal
''The Wall Street Journal'' is an American business-focused, international daily newspaper based in New York City, with international editions also available in Chinese and Japanese. The ''Journal'', along with its Asian editions, is published ...
'', of $5 billion for. Despite CNBC already having a contract with Dow Jones to provide content and services to the network, the Fox Entertainment Group officially launched the Fox Business Network
Fox Business (officially known as Fox Business Network, or FBN) is an American business news channel and website publication owned by the Fox News Media division of Fox Corporation. The channel broadcasts primarily from studios at 1211 Avenue ...
on October 15, 2007. Alexis Glick, the network's original morning show host and vice president of business news, indicated that its lawyers had reviewed the details of Dow Jones' contract with CNBC, but noted that it would still "actively use" other Dow Jones properties.
In September 2009, News Corp established NewsCore, a global wire service set up to provide news stories to all of News Corp's journalistic outlets.
In April 2010, News Corporation sold Bulgarian broadcaster bTV, which it launched on 1 June 2000, as part of a deal to Central European Media Enterprises (CME) for $400 million in addition to another $13 million for working capital adjustment. The deal included cable channels bTV Comedy and Btv Cinema and News Corporation's 74% stake in Radio Company CJ which included five radio stations.
In September 2010, due to the Fijian government's requirement that the country's media outlet must be 90% owned by Fiji Nationals, News Corporation sold 90% of their stake in their Fijian newspapers ('' Fiji Times'', ''Nai Lalakai'', and '' Shanti Dut'') to Motibhai Group of Companies.
In late February 2011, News Corp officially put the now-struggling Myspace up for sale, which was estimated to be worth $50–200 million. Losses from the last quarter of 2010 were $156 million, over double of the previous year, which dragged down the otherwise strong results of parent News Corp. Its struggles were attributed to the growth of the competing social network Facebook
Facebook is an online social media and social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. Founded in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with fellow Harvard College students and roommates Eduardo Saverin, Andrew McCollum, Dustin Mosk ...
. The deadline for bids, May 31, 2011, passed without any above the reserve price of $100 million being submitted. The rapid deterioration in Myspace's business during the most recent quarter had deterred many potent suitors. Later in June, Specific Media and pop singer Justin Timberlake bought the site for $35 million, which CNN reported noted was "far less than the $580 million News Corp. paid for Myspace in 2005." Murdoch went on to call the Myspace purchase a "huge mistake".
On July 13, 2011, Rupert Murdoch announced that the company would withdraw its takeover bid for BSkyB
Sky UK Limited is a British broadcaster and telecommunications company that provides television and broadband Internet services, fixed line and mobile telephone services to consumers and businesses in the United Kingdom. It is a subsidiary of ...
due to concerns relating to the ''News of the World'' scandal. News Corporation already owned, and continues to own, 39.1% of BSkyB.
On June 6, 2012, News Corporation announced that it would buy out ESPN Inc.'s stake in ESPN Star Sports to gain full control over the Asia-Pacific sports network. On November 20, 2012, News Corporation announced that it would acquire a 49% stake in the regional sports network YES Network, owned by the Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL ...
team New York Yankees. In January 2013, News Corp. attained 54.5% majority control of Sky Deutschland.
On February 4, 2013, News Corporation announced the sale of IGN
''IGN'' (formerly ''Imagine Games Network'') is an American video game and entertainment media website operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. The company's headquarters is located in San Francisco's SoMa dis ...
and its related properties to the publishing company Ziff Davis
Ziff Davis, Inc. is an American digital media and internet company. First founded in 1927 by William Bernard Ziff Sr. and Bernard George Davis, the company primarily owns technology-oriented media websites, online shopping-related services, a ...
. News Corp. had planned to spin-off IGN as an independent company, but failed to do so.
Scandals
In July 2011, News Corp closed down the ''News of the World
The ''News of the World'' was a weekly national red top tabloid newspaper published every Sunday in the United Kingdom from 1843 to 2011. It was at one time the world's highest-selling English-language newspaper, and at closure still had one o ...
'' newspaper in the United Kingdom due to allegations of phone hackings. The allegations include trying to access former Prime Minister Gordon Brown
James Gordon Brown (born 20 February 1951) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Labour Party from 2007 to 2010. He previously served as Chancellor of the Exchequer in Tony B ...
's voice mail, and obtain information from his bank accounts, family's medical records, and private legal files. Allegations of hacking have also been brought up in relation to former Prime Minister Tony Blair
Sir Anthony Charles Lynton Blair (born 6 May 1953) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1997 to 2007 and Leader of the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007. He previously served as Leader of th ...
, and the Royal Family. Other allegations put out by ''The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'' newspaper include the exploitation, with intent to gain access to or use private information, of a list of 4,332 names or partial names, 2,987 mobile phone numbers, 30 audio tapes of varying length and 91 PIN codes, of a kind required to access the voicemail of the minority of targets who change the factory settings on their mobile phones. The names are said to include those of British victims of September 11, 2001 terror attacks, family members of victims of the "7/7" bombings on London's transit system, family members of British troops killed overseas, Milly Dowler, a 13-year-old missing British girl who was later found dead, actor Hugh Grant and a lawyer representing the family of Princess Diana's lover at the inquest into her death.
On July 13, 2011, News Corp withdrew its bid to purchase the final 61% stake in BSkyB
Sky UK Limited is a British broadcaster and telecommunications company that provides television and broadband Internet services, fixed line and mobile telephone services to consumers and businesses in the United Kingdom. It is a subsidiary of ...
after pressure from both the Labour and Conservative Parties in Parliament.
Allegations about the violation of ethical standards by the News Corporation subsidiary ''News of the World'' have been speculatively applied to News Corporation holdings in the United States. Senator John Rockefeller (D-WV) stated on July 12, 2011, that there should be a government investigation into News Corporation "to ensure that Americans have not had their privacy violated." His statement was echoed on Wednesday by Sen. Robert Menendez (D-NJ), who specifically requested an investigation into 9/11 victims, as well as Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ) who encouraged an investigation by the Securities and Exchange Commission. On July 13, 2011, Representative Peter King (R-NY) wrote a letter to the FBI requesting an investigation into News Corporation's ethical practices, and on July 14, the FBI opened a probe into the hacking of 9/11 victims. Les Hinton, chief executive of the media group's Dow Jones, resigned on July 15, saying, "I have seen hundreds of news reports of both actual and alleged misconduct during the time I was executive chairman of News International and responsible for the company. The pain caused to innocent people is unimaginable. That I was ignorant of what apparently happened is irrelevant and in the circumstances I feel it is proper for me to resign from News Corp, and apologize to those hurt by the actions of the News of the World."
In 2012, following a BBC ''Panorama'' report, allegations were made that News Corp subsidiary NDS Group had used hackers to undermine pay TV rivals around the world. Some of the victims of the alleged hacking, such as Austar, were later taken over by News Corp and others such as Ondigital
ITV Digital was a British digital terrestrial television broadcaster which launched a pay-TV service on the world's first digital terrestrial television network. Its main shareholders were Carlton Communications plc and Granada plc, owners ...
later went bust. NDS had originally been set up to provide security to News Corp's pay TV interests but emails obtained by Fairfax Media
Fairfax Media was a media company in Australia and New Zealand, with investments in newspaper, magazines, radio and digital properties. The company was founded by John Fairfax as John Fairfax and Sons, who purchased '' The Sydney Morning Herald ...
revealed they had also pursued a wider agenda by distributing the keys to rival set-top box operators and seeking to obtain phone records of suspected rivals. The emails were from the hard drive of NDS European chief Ray Adams. In 2012, it was also revealed that Australian Federal police were working with UK police to investigate hacking by News Corp.
On February 4, 2022, News Corp was reported suffered a "persistent cyberattack" in January. The suspected Chinese hackers targeted one of its IT providers, and successfully got some anonymous data. According to News Corp, the incident did not appear to affect systems holding customer and financial data.
Split and 21st Century Fox's eventual sale to Disney
On June 28, 2012, Rupert Murdoch announced that, after concerns from shareholders in response to the recent scandals and to "unlock even greater long-term shareholder value", News Corporation's assets would be split into two publicly traded companies, one oriented towards media, and the other towards publishing. News Corp's publishing operations were spun out into a present-day News Corporation with Robert James Thomson, editor of ''The Wall Street Journal
''The Wall Street Journal'' is an American business-focused, international daily newspaper based in New York City, with international editions also available in Chinese and Japanese. The ''Journal'', along with its Asian editions, is published ...
'', as CEO. The present News Corporation, which retains most of its media properties (such as the Fox Entertainment Group and 20th Century Fox
20th Century Studios, Inc. (previously known as 20th Century Fox) is an American film production company headquartered at the Fox Studio Lot in the Century City area of Los Angeles. As of 2019, it serves as a film production arm of Walt Disn ...
) and Murdoch as CEO, was renamed 21st Century Fox. Murdoch remains chairman for both companies.
Shareholders approved the split on June 11, 2013. On June 19, 2013, preliminary trading for the new News Corp on the Australian Securities Exchange
Australian Securities Exchange Ltd or ASX, is an Australian public company that operates Australia's primary securities exchange, the Australian Securities Exchange (sometimes referred to outside of Australia as, or confused within Australia as, ...
commenced in preparation for the formal split that was finalized on June 28, 2013. Shareholders received one share of New News Corp for every four shares they owned of the old News Corp. The two new companies began trading on the NASDAQ
The Nasdaq Stock Market () (National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations Stock Market) is an American stock exchange based in New York City. It is the most active stock trading venue in the US by volume, and ranked second ...
on July 1, 2013. 21st Century Fox and most of its businesses were later acquired by the Walt Disney Company
The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on Octobe ...
in 2019; its US broadcast, sports, and news assets were spun-off to Fox Corporation
Fox Corporation (stylized in all-caps as FOX Corporation) is a publicly traded American mass media company operated and controlled by media mogul Rupert Murdoch and headquartered at 1211 Avenue of the Americas in New York City. Incorporated ...
which would be retained under Murdoch ownership.
Shareholders
*In August 2005, the Murdoch family
Members of the Murdoch family are prominent international media magnates and media tycoons with roots in Australia and the United Kingdom, along with their media assets in the United States. Some members have also been prominent in the ar ...
owned only about 29% of the company of which as of June 2013 had been diluted to around 17%. However, nearly all of these shares were voting shares which currently stand at 39% of the total voting shares, and Rupert Murdoch retained effective control of the company. Nonetheless, John Malone of Liberty Media had built up a large stake, with about half of the shares being voting shares. Therefore, in November 2006, News Corporation announced its intention to transfer its 38.5% interest in DirecTV Group to John Malone's Liberty Media; in return it bought back Liberty's 16.3% stake in News Corp., giving Murdoch tighter control of the latter firm. Murdoch sold 17.5 million class A shares in December 2007.
*Another major stakeholder has been Al-Waleed bin Talal, of the Saudi Royal Family. In 1997, ''Time
Time is the continued sequence of existence and events that occurs in an apparently irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequence events, t ...
'' reported that Al-Waleed owned about five percent of News Corporation. In 2010, Alwaleed's stake in News Corp. was about 7 percent, amounting to $3 billion. In 2013, News Corp. had a $175 million (19 percent) investment in Al-Waleed's Rotana Group
Rotana Media Group, commonly known as Rotana ( ar, روتانا, Rōtānā), is a Saudi Arabian entertainment company. It is primarily owned by Saudi prince Al Waleed bin Talal.
The media conglomerate includes a film production company (Rotan ...
, the Arab world's largest entertainment company.[Gustin, Sam (August 16, 2010)]
"News Corp., the Saudi Prince and the 'Ground Zero Mosque'"
''Daily Finance'' (AOL), via Rich, Frank (August 21, 2010
''The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'', p. WK8 NY ed.. Retrieved August 22, 2010. Al-Waleed sold all his shares in November 2017
Annual conference
News Corporation organises an annual management conference, discussing media issues related to geopolitics
Geopolitics (from Greek γῆ ''gê'' "earth, land" and πολιτική ''politikḗ'' "politics") is the study of the effects of Earth's geography (human and physical) on politics and international relations. While geopolitics usually refers ...
. Attendees include News Corporation executives, senior journalists, politicians and celebrities. Previous events were in Cancún, Mexico, and the Hayman Island
Hayman Island is the most northerly of the Whitsunday Islands, off the coast of Central Queensland in the locality of Whitsundays in the Whitsunday Region, Queensland, Australia. The island is . It is a private island open to the public, mos ...
off the coast of Australia. The events are private and secretive, there are no records available for the agenda or talks given at the conferences, and no uninvited journalists are permitted access.
The 2006 event in Pebble Beach, California was led by Rupert Murdoch
Keith Rupert Murdoch ( ; born 11 March 1931) is an Australian-born American business magnate. Through his company News Corp, he is the owner of hundreds of local, national, and international publishing outlets around the world, including ...
. According to a copy of the agenda leaked to the ''Los Angeles Times
The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the U ...
'' and other media accounts, issues discussed related from Europe to broadcasting and new media
New media describes communication technologies that enable or enhance interaction between users as well as interaction between users and content. In the middle of the 1990s, the phrase "new media" became widely used as part of a sales pitch for ...
, terrorism to the national policy. The event included speeches from Murdoch, Actor and former governor of California Arnold Schwarzenegger
Arnold Alois Schwarzenegger (born July 30, 1947) is an Austrian and American actor, film producer, businessman, retired professional bodybuilder and politician who served as the 38th governor of California between 2003 and 2011. '' Time'' ...
, former British Prime Minister Tony Blair
Sir Anthony Charles Lynton Blair (born 6 May 1953) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1997 to 2007 and Leader of the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007. He previously served as Leader of th ...
, Bono, Al Gore
Albert Arnold Gore Jr. (born March 31, 1948) is an American politician, businessman, and environmentalist who served as the 45th vice president of the United States from 1993 to 2001 under President Bill Clinton. Gore was the Democratic nom ...
, Senator John McCain
John Sidney McCain III (August 29, 1936 – August 25, 2018) was an American politician and United States Navy officer who served as a United States senator from Arizona from 1987 until his death in 2018. He previously served two terms ...
and Bill Clinton
William Jefferson Clinton ( né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He previously served as governor of Arkansas from 1979 to 1981 and again ...
while Israel's President, Shimon Peres, appeared on a panel named "Islam and the West". Other notable attendees included Newt Gingrich and Nicole Kidman.
Political donations
In anticipation of US midterm elections, News Corporation donated $1 million to the Republican Governors Association in June 2010. The move was criticised by Democrats, who said this was evidence of News Corporation's news outlets conservative leanings (see Fox News Channel controversies). The Democratic Governors Association also criticised the donation and demanded more transparency in the reporting by News Corporation companies. DGA head Nathan Daschle wrote to the chairman of News Corporation company Fox News, Roger Ailes
Roger Eugene Ailes (May 15, 1940 – May 18, 2017) was an American television executive and media consultant. He was the chairman and CEO of Fox News, Fox Television Stations and 20th Television. Ailes was a media consultant for Republican ...
: "In the interest of some fairness and balance, I request that you add a formal disclaimer to your coverage any time any of your programs covers governors or gubernatorial races between now and election day."
Around the same time, News Corporation also donated $1 million to the United States Chamber of Commerce. The Chamber aggressively supported the Republican effort to retake Congress in 2010. This donation and an earlier $1 million contribution that News Corporation made to the Republican Governor's Association led media critics to question whether the company had crossed an ethical line for a media company.
Corporate governance
The company's Board of Directors consisted of 16 individuals at the time of its break up:
*Rupert Murdoch
Keith Rupert Murdoch ( ; born 11 March 1931) is an Australian-born American business magnate. Through his company News Corp, he is the owner of hundreds of local, national, and international publishing outlets around the world, including ...
(Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer)
* José María Aznar (Former Prime Minister of Spain)
* Natalie Bancroft (Director)
* Peter Barnes
* James W. Breyer
* Chase Carey (President and Chief Operating Officer)
* Elaine Chao
* David F. DeVoe (Chief Financial Officer)
* Viet Dinh
* Sir Roderick Ian Eddington
* Joel I. Klein (Executive Vice President)
*James Murdoch
James Rupert Jacob Murdoch (born 13 December 1972) is a British-American businessman, the younger son of media mogul Rupert Murdoch, and was the chief executive officer (CEO) of 21st Century Fox from 2015 to 2019.
He was the chairman and CEO f ...
(Chairman & Chief Executive Officer, Europe & Asia)
* Lachlan Murdoch
* Álvaro Uribe (Former President of Colombia)
*Stanley S. Shuman (Director Emeritus)
* Arthur M. Siskind (Director Emeritus, Senior Advisor to the Chairman)
Office of the chairman
*Rupert Murdoch
Keith Rupert Murdoch ( ; born 11 March 1931) is an Australian-born American business magnate. Through his company News Corp, he is the owner of hundreds of local, national, and international publishing outlets around the world, including ...
(Chairman and CEO)
* Chase Carey (President, Chief Operating Officer & Deputy Chairman)
* David DeVoe (Chief Financial Officer)
*James Murdoch
James Rupert Jacob Murdoch (born 13 December 1972) is a British-American businessman, the younger son of media mogul Rupert Murdoch, and was the chief executive officer (CEO) of 21st Century Fox from 2015 to 2019.
He was the chairman and CEO f ...
(Deputy Chief Operating Officer; Chairman and CEO, International)
*Daniel Suárez García (Chairman and CEO, Latin America)
Final holdings
News Corporation split up to 21st Century Fox and the current incarnation of News Corporation on June 28, 2013. All media and broadcasting assets, except media assets owned by News Limited
News Corp Australia is an Australian media conglomerate and wholly owned subsidiary of the American News Corp. One of Australia's largest media conglomerates, News Corp Australia employs more than 8,000 staff nationwide and approximately 3,000 ...
, now belong to The Walt Disney Company
The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on Octobe ...
and Fox Corporation
Fox Corporation (stylized in all-caps as FOX Corporation) is a publicly traded American mass media company operated and controlled by media mogul Rupert Murdoch and headquartered at 1211 Avenue of the Americas in New York City. Incorporated ...
(successors to 21st Century Fox), its legal successors. Meanwhile, newspapers and other publishing assets, including media assets under News Limited
News Corp Australia is an Australian media conglomerate and wholly owned subsidiary of the American News Corp. One of Australia's largest media conglomerates, News Corp Australia employs more than 8,000 staff nationwide and approximately 3,000 ...
, were spun off as a new News Corp
News Corporation, stylized as News Corp, is an American mass media and publishing company headquartered in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. The second incarnation of the original News Corporation, it was formed on June 28, 2013, following a ...
.
Music and radio
*Fox Film Music Group
* Fox News Radio
* Wireless Group Plc (acquired in June 2016, encompassing UK & Ireland radio stations Virgin Radio, TalkSport, U105 Belfast, LMFM (Louth-Meath), Q102 Dublin, FM104, 96FM Cork)
Sport
*Majority ownership of the Brisbane Broncos
The Brisbane Broncos Rugby League Football Club Ltd., commonly referred to as the Broncos, is an Australian professional rugby league football club based in Brisbane, Queensland. Founded in April 1987, the Broncos play in Australia's elite ...
(68.9%) and full ownership of the Melbourne Storm
The Melbourne Storm are a rugby league club based in Melbourne, Victoria in Australia that participates in the National Rugby League. The first fully professional rugby league team based in the state, the Storm entered the competition in 1998 ...
rugby league team.
*Colorado Rockies
The Colorado Rockies are an American professional baseball team based in Denver. The Rockies compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. The team plays its home baseball games at Coors ...
(15%)
Studios
* Fox Entertainment Group: 20th Century Fox's parent company
*20th Century Fox
20th Century Studios, Inc. (previously known as 20th Century Fox) is an American film production company headquartered at the Fox Studio Lot in the Century City area of Los Angeles. As of 2019, it serves as a film production arm of Walt Disn ...
: a film production/distribution company (transferred to Disney)
**Fox Searchlight Pictures
Searchlight Pictures, Inc. is an American film production company and a subsidiary of Walt Disney Studios, which is part of the Walt Disney Company. Founded in 1994 as Fox Searchlight Pictures, Inc. for 20th Century Fox (later 20th Century Stu ...
– specialized films (transferred to Disney).
**Fox 2000 Pictures
Fox 2000 Pictures was an American film production company within The Walt Disney Studios. It was a sister studio of the larger film studio 20th Century Fox and Fox Searchlight Pictures specializing in producing independent films in mid-range rel ...
– general audience feature films (transferred to Disney).
** 20th Century Fox Animation
** Fox Music
** 20th Century Fox International
** 20th Century Fox Español
** 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment
*20th Century Fox Television
20th Television (formerly 20th Century Fox Television, 20th Century-Fox Television, and TCF Television Productions, Inc.) is an American television production company that is a division of Disney Television Studios, part of The Walt Disney Comp ...
– primetime television programming. (partially transferred to Disney)
** 20th Television – television distribution (syndication).
** Fox 21 – low scripted/budgeted television production company.
** Fox Television Animation – animation production company.
** Fox Television Studios (productions)- market specific programming e.g. COPS and network television company.
*** Fox Television Studios International
*** Fox World Productions
* Fox Faith – Promotion and distribution of Christian and related "family friendly" movies on DVD and some theatrical release.
* Fox Studios Australia, Sydney, New South Wales
*Blue Sky Studios
Blue Sky Studios, Inc. was an American computer animation studio based in Greenwich, Connecticut. It was founded on February 22, 1987 by Chris Wedge, Michael Ferraro, Carl Ludwig, Alison Brown, David Brown, and Eugene Troubetzkoy after their e ...
– production of CGI films e.g. Ice Age (transferred to Disney).
*Fox Filmed Entertainment
Fox Entertainment Group was an American entertainment company specialised in filmed entertainment owned by 21st Century Fox. Following the acquisition of 21st Century Fox by Disney, the group's assets were folded into various Disney units. The ...
* New Regency Productions (20%) – general audience feature films.
* Regency Enterprises (20%) – parent company of New Regency Productions (50%).
* Fox Star Studios fully owned -the Studio for Indian Movie's Production and Distribution.
TV
News Corp agreed to sell eight of its television stations to Oak Hill Capital Partners
Oak Hill Capital Partners is a private equity firm headquartered in New York City, with more than $19 billion of committed capital from entrepreneurs, endowments, foundations, corporations, pension funds and global financial institutions. ...
for approximately $1.1 billion as of December 22, 2007. The stations are US Fox affiliates. These stations, along with those already acquired by Oak Hill that were formerly owned by The New York Times Company
The New York Times Company is an American mass media company that publishes ''The New York Times''. Its headquarters are in Manhattan, New York City.
History
The company was founded by Henry Jarvis Raymond and George Jones in New York City. ...
, formed the nucleus of Oak Hill's Local TV LLC
Local TV LLC was a television broadcasting company owned by Oak Hill Capital Partners which operated 20 television stations in the United States. The group was formed in 2006 by the acquisition of nine television stations owned by The New York ...
division.
Broadcast
* Fox Broadcasting Company (Fox), a US broadcast television network
* MyNetworkTV, a US broadcast television network
* Fox Television Stations, a group of owned and operated Fox television stations
Satellite television
*BSkyB
Sky UK Limited is a British broadcaster and telecommunications company that provides television and broadband Internet services, fixed line and mobile telephone services to consumers and businesses in the United Kingdom. It is a subsidiary of ...
, United Kingdom & Ireland (39.1% holding). In practice, a controlling interest.
* Sky Network Television, New Zealand (44%)
* Sky Italia (100%), Italy's largest pay TV service (previously owning part of Stream TV)
* Sky Deutschland (54.5%), Germany's largest pay TV provider
* Tata Sky (30%), an Indian DirectToHome TeleVision Service Provider. (in partnership with Tata Group (70%))
* Foxtel (25%), Australia, a joint venture with Telstra
Telstra Group Limited is an Australian telecommunications company that builds and operates telecommunications networks and markets voice, mobile, internet access, pay television and other products and services. It is a member of the S&P/ASX 2 ...
(50%) and Consolidated Media Holdings (25%)
* FOX Italy, Italian Broadcast and Production Company (with 2 HDTV)
* Star TV Channels (Satellite TeleVision Asian Region), an Asian satellite TV service having 300 million viewers in 53 countries, mainly in India, China & other Asian countries
* Phoenix Television (17.6%), satellite TV network with landing rights in Hong Kong, and select provinces on Mainland China.
Cable
Cable TV channels owned (in whole or part) and operated by News Corporation include:
*Fox Business Network
Fox Business (officially known as Fox Business Network, or FBN) is an American business news channel and website publication owned by the Fox News Media division of Fox Corporation. The channel broadcasts primarily from studios at 1211 Avenue ...
, a business news channel.
* Fox Classics, a channel airing classic TV shows and movies
* Fox Classics (Japan)
* Fox Sports & Entertainment/Fox BS238
* Fox Movie Channel, an all-movie channel that airs commercial-free movies from 20th Century Fox
20th Century Studios, Inc. (previously known as 20th Century Fox) is an American film production company headquartered at the Fox Studio Lot in the Century City area of Los Angeles. As of 2019, it serves as a film production arm of Walt Disn ...
's film library
* Fox News Channel, a 24-hour news and opinion channel
*Fox Sports Networks
Fox Sports Networks (FSN), formerly known as Fox Sports Net, was the collective name for a group of regional sports channels in the United States. Formed in 1996 by News Corporation, the networks were acquired by The Walt Disney Company on Mar ...
, a chain of US regional cable news television networks broadcasting local sporting events linked together by national sports news programming. Local channels include " Fox Sports Southwest", " Fox Sports Detroit", etc. (some affiliates are owned by Cablevision
Cablevision Systems Corporation was an American cable television company with systems serving areas surrounding New York City. It was the fifth-largest cable provider and ninth-largest television provider in the United States. Throughout its e ...
.)
** SportSouth, a regional sports network in the United States, with its headquarters in Atlanta
Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,71 ...
, and affiliate of Fox Sports Net.
** Sun Sports a regional sports network in the United States, with its headquarters in Miami
Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a coastal metropolis and the county seat of Miami-Dade County in South Florida, United States. With a population of 442,241 at t ...
, Florida, and affiliate of Fox Sports Net.
* Fox College Sports, a college sports network consisting of three regionally aligned channels, mostly with archived Fox Sports Net programmes but also some live and original content.
* Fox Sports International
** Fox Soccer Channel, a United States digital cable
Digital cable is the distribution of cable television using digital data and video compression. The technology was first developed by General Instrument. By 2000, most cable companies offered digital features, eventually replacing their previo ...
and satellite network specialising mainly in soccer.
** Fox Soccer Plus, a sister network to FSC, but including coverage of other sports, most notably rugby. Launched in 2010 after News Corporation picked up many of the broadcast rights abandoned by Setanta Sports when it stopped broadcasting in the U.S.
**Fox Pan American Sports
Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush'').
Twelve ...
(37.9%) – joint venture with Hicks, Muse, and Tate & Furst.
*** Fox Sports en Español (50%), a Spanish-language North American cable sports network; its sports line-up is tailored to appeal to a Latin American audience.
*** Fox Sports en Latinoamérica, a Latin American satellite and cable sports network.
* FX Networks, a cable network broadcasting reruns of programming previously shown on other channels, but recently creating its own programming, including the Emmy Award
The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...
-winning programmes '' The Shield'' and ''Damages
At common law, damages are a remedy in the form of a monetary award to be paid to a claimant as compensation for loss or injury. To warrant the award, the claimant must show that a breach of duty has caused foreseeable loss. To be recognised at ...
''.
*SPEED
In everyday use and in kinematics, the speed (commonly referred to as ''v'') of an object is the magnitude of the change of its position over time or the magnitude of the change of its position per unit of time; it is thus a scalar quanti ...
* FUEL TV
*Big Ten Network
Big Ten Network (BTN) is an American sports network based in Chicago, Illinois. The channel is dedicated to coverage of collegiate sports sanctioned by the Big Ten Conference, including live and recorded event telecasts, news, analysis programs, ...
, cable and satellite channel dedicated to The Big Ten Conference
The Big Ten Conference (stylized B1G, formerly the Western Conference and the Big Nine Conference) is the oldest Division I collegiate athletic conference in the United States. Founded as the Intercollegiate Conference of Faculty Representat ...
, launched August 2007 (49%)
*National Geographic Channel
National Geographic (formerly National Geographic Channel; abbreviated and trademarked as Nat Geo or Nat Geo TV) is an American pay television network and flagship channel owned by the National Geographic Global Networks unit of Disney General E ...
(joint venture with National Geographic Society) 67%
* National Geographic Channel International 75%
* Nat Geo Mundo (joint venture with National Geographic Society)
* Nat Geo Wild (joint venture with National Geographic Society)
* YES Network (49%), regional cable sports network; broadcasts New York Yankees and Brooklyn Nets
The Brooklyn Nets are an American professional basketball team based in the New York City borough of Brooklyn. The Nets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference. The ...
games, among other teams.
* Fox International Channels, domestic cable channels offering different formats of Fox programming in over thirty countries worldwide.
** Fox
** Fox Life
** Fox Life HD
** Fox Filipino
** Fox Crime
** FX
** Fox Horror
** Fox Movies
** Fox Sports
** Speed Channel
**National Geographic Channel
National Geographic (formerly National Geographic Channel; abbreviated and trademarked as Nat Geo or Nat Geo TV) is an American pay television network and flagship channel owned by the National Geographic Global Networks unit of Disney General E ...
** National Geographic Channel HD
** National Geographic Wild
** National Geographic Adventure
** National Geographic Music
** National Geographic Junior
**Cult
In modern English, ''cult'' is usually a pejorative term for a social group that is defined by its unusual Religion, religious, spirituality, spiritual, or Philosophy, philosophical beliefs and rituals, or its Followership, common interest in ...
** Next:HD
** Voyage
** Real Estate TV
** BabyTV
** Fox Toma 1 – Spanish-language television production.
** Fox Telecolombia – Spanish-language television production. (51%)
** Utarget.Fox – European and Latin American online ad company, plus now handles TV ad sales.
*''Central & South America''
**Fox Latin American Channels – channels available in over 17 countries in Latin America
***National Geographic Channel
National Geographic (formerly National Geographic Channel; abbreviated and trademarked as Nat Geo or Nat Geo TV) is an American pay television network and flagship channel owned by the National Geographic Global Networks unit of Disney General E ...
*** National Geographic Channel HD
*** National Geographic Wild
*** Nat Geo Music
*** Universal Channel
*** Universal HD
*** Fox Channel
*** Fox HD
*** FX
*** Fox Life
*** Fox Sports
*** Speed Channel
***Baby TV
BabyTV (stylised as Baby''tv'') is a multilingual international television channel for babies, toddlers and preschoolers aged 3 or lower, owned by Fox Networks Group, a subsidiary of the Disney International Content and Operations division of ...
*** Utilisima
*** Fox One-Stop Media – advertising sales for company owned and third party channels in Latin America
** LAPTV (60%) (Latin American Pay Television) operates 8 cable movie channels throughout South America excluding Brazil.
**Telecine
Telecine ( or ) is the process of transferring film into video and is performed in a color suite. The term is also used to refer to the equipment used in the post-production process.
Telecine enables a motion picture, captured originally on ...
(12.5%) operates 5 cable movie channels in Brazil.
*''Australia''
** Premier Media Group (50%)
*** Fox Sports 1
*** Fox Sports 2
*** Fox Sports 3
***SPEED
In everyday use and in kinematics, the speed (commonly referred to as ''v'') of an object is the magnitude of the change of its position over time or the magnitude of the change of its position per unit of time; it is thus a scalar quanti ...
*** FoxSportsNews
*** Fuel TV Australia
** Premium Movie Partnership (20%) – movie channels, a joint venture between 20th Century Fox
20th Century Studios, Inc. (previously known as 20th Century Fox) is an American film production company headquartered at the Fox Studio Lot in the Century City area of Los Angeles. As of 2019, it serves as a film production arm of Walt Disn ...
, Sony
, commonly stylized as SONY, is a Japanese multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. As a major technology company, it operates as one of the world's largest manufacturers of consumer and professional ...
, NBCUniversal, Viacom and Liberty Media
''PLATFORMS''
*India
**Hathway Cable & Datacom (22.2%), India's 2nd largest cable network through 7 cities including Bangalore, Chennai, Delhi, Mumbai & Pune
*Taiwan
**Total TV (20%), a pay TV platform with JV partner KOO's Group majority owner (80%). News Corp also has a 20% interest in the KOO's Group directly.
Internet
* News Corp. Digital Media
** Foxsports.com – website with sports news, scores, statistics, video and fantasy sports
**Hulu
Hulu () is an American subscription streaming service majority-owned by The Walt Disney Company, with Comcast's NBCUniversal holding a minority stake. It was launched on October 29, 2007 and it offers a library of films and television series ...
(27%) – online video streaming site in partnership with NBCUniversal and Disney.
**Flektor – provides Web-based tools for photo and video editing and mashups.
**Slingshot Labs – web development incubator (Includes the sites DailyFill).
**Strategic Data Corp – interactive advertising company which develops technology to deliver targeted internet advertising.
**Scout.com
** WhatIfSports.com – sports simulation and prediction website. Also provides fantasy-style sports games to play.
*Indya.com – 'India's no. 1 Entertainment Portal'
*ROO Group Inc (5% increasing to 10% with performance targets)
News Digital Media
**News.com.au – Australia's most popular news website in 2013 and as of April 2014
**CareerOne.com.au (50%) – recruitment advertisement website in partnership with Monster Worldwide.
** Carsguide.com.au
**in2mobi.com.au
**TrueLocal.com.au
**Moshtix.com.au – a ticket retailer
**Learning Seat
**Wego News owns minority stake in Wego.com
**Weair News owns minority stake in weair.com
**Netus (75%) – investment co. in online properties.
* Move, Inc (80%)
** realtor.com – United States online real estate portal with up to date and accurate listings
**move.com
**listhub.com
**Doorsteps
**Tigerlead
**Moving.com
**Top Producer
**Reesio
**Relocation.com
**SeniorHousingNet.com
*REA Group (60.7%)
** Realestate.com.au
**Business Services s.r.l. Access our internationalization service opens to endless proposals and possibilities of rooting in markets around the world.
**Casa.it (69.4%), Sky Italia also holds a 30.6% share
**atHome group, operator of leading realestate websites in Luxembourg, France, Belgium and Germany.
***Altowin (51%), provider of office management tools for realestate agents in Belgium.
**Propertyfinders.com (50%), News International holds the remaining 50%
***Sherlock Publications, owner of hotproperty.co.uk portal and magazine titles 'Hot Property', 'Renting' and 'Overseas'
***ukpropertyshop.co.uk, most comprehensive UK estate agent directory.
**PropertyLook, property websites in Australia and New Zealand.
**HomeSite.com.au home renovation and improvement website.
**Square Foot Limited, Hong Kong's largest English Language property magazine and website
***Primedia
Primedia is a South African media group, headquartered in Sandton, Johannesburg.
History
Primedia was established in 1994 and its listing on the JSE Securities Exchange was completed in April 1995. Primedia remained listed on the JSE until 1 ...
– Holding co. of Inside DB, a Hong Kong lifestyle magazine.
*TadpoleNet Media (10%) Hosts of ArmySailor.com
*New Zealand
** Fatso – leading online DVD subscription service (ownership through stake in Sky Network Television).
** Fox Networks – one of the largest international ad networks.
**Expedient InfoMedia blog network.
* Storyful
*Unruly
* The News Broadcasting Corporation
TNBCLive.com
- United States's popular news website in 2017 and as of April 2022
Other assets
* Fox Sports Grill (50%) – Upscale sports bar and restaurant with 7 locations: Scottsdale, Arizona; Irvine, California; Seattle
Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...
; Plano, Texas; Houston
Houston (; ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in Texas, the Southern United States#Major cities, most populous city in the Southern United States, the List of United States cities by population, fourth-most pop ...
; San Diego; and Atlanta
Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,71 ...
.
*Fox Sports Skybox
Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush'').
Twelve ...
(70%) – Sports fans' Bar & Grill at Staples Center and six airport restaurants.
* News America Marketing (US) – (100%) – nation's leading marketing services company, products include a portfolio of in-store, home-delivered and online media under the SmartSource brand.
* Rotana (19%) – Largest Arab entertainment company owned by Saudi Prince Al-Waleed bin Talal
* The Daily – iPad only newspaper delivered daily.
*Making Fun – social game developer for making games for social networking sites, smartphones, tablets and other devices.
* Stockpoint
* Lane Bryant
Books
*HarperCollins
HarperCollins Publishers LLC is one of the Big Five English-language publishing companies, alongside Penguin Random House, Simon & Schuster, Hachette, and Macmillan. The company is headquartered in New York City and is a subsidiary of News C ...
book publishing company
**Harper''Collins'' India
*Zondervan
Zondervan is an international Christian media and publishing company located in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Zondervan is a founding member of the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association (ECPA). They are a part of HarperCollins Christian Pu ...
Christian book publisher
**Inspirio – religious gift production.
Newspapers
*Australia published by News Limited.
**''The Australian
''The Australian'', with its Saturday edition, ''The Weekend Australian'', is a broadsheet newspaper published by News Corp Australia since 14 July 1964.Bruns, Axel. "3.1. The active audience: Transforming journalism from gatekeeping to gatewa ...
'' (Nationwide)
**Community Media Group (16 QLD & NSW suburban/regional titles)
**Cumberland-Courier Newspapers (23 suburban/commuter titles)
**'' The Courier-Mail'' (Queensland)
**'' The Sunday Mail'' (Queensland)
**'' The Cairns Post'' (Cairns, Queensland)
**'' The Gold Coast Bulletin'' (Gold Coast, Queensland)
**''The Townsville Bulletin'' (Townsville, Queensland)
**''The Daily Telegraph
''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a national British daily broadsheet newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed across the United Kingdom and internationally.
It was fo ...
'' (New South Wales)
**'' The Sunday Telegraph'' (New South Wales)
**''Herald Sun
The ''Herald Sun'' is a conservative daily tabloid newspaper based in Melbourne, Australia, published by The Herald and Weekly Times, a subsidiary of News Corp Australia, itself a subsidiary of the Murdoch owned News Corp. The ''Herald Su ...
'' (Victoria)
**'' Sunday Herald Sun'' (Victoria)
**'' The Weekly Times'' (Victoria)
**Leader Newspapers (33 suburban Melbourne titles)
**'' MX'' (Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane CBD)
**''The Geelong Advertiser
''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the ...
'' (Geelong, Victoria)
**'' The Advertiser'' (South Australia)
**'' The Sunday Mail'' (South Australia)
**''Messenger Newspapers
Messenger Newspapers is the publisher of 9 free suburban weekly newspapers together covering the Adelaide metropolitan area. Established by Roger Baynes in Port Adelaide in 1951, ''Messenger'' has since acquired other independent suburban titles ...
'' (11 suburban Adelaide, SA titles)
**''The Sunday Times
''The Sunday Times'' is a British newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of News UK, wh ...
'' (Western Australia)
**'' The Mercury'' (Tasmania)
**Quest Newspapers (19 suburban Brisbane, QLD titles)
**'' The Sunday Tasmanian'' (Tasmania)
**''Northern Territory News
The ''Northern Territory News'' (also known and branded as the ''NT News'') is a morning tabloid newspaper based in Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia. Owned by News Corp Australia, it is published every week from Monday to Saturday. It pri ...
'' (Northern Territory)
**'' The Sunday Territorian'' (Northern Territory)
**'' The Tablelands Advertiser'' (Atherton Tablelands and the Far North, Queensland)
*Fiji
**'' Fiji Times'' (National) (10%)
** ''Nai Lalakai'' (10%)
** '' Shanti Dut'' (10%)
*Papua New Guinea
**''Papua New Guinea Post-Courier
The ''Papua New Guinea Post-Courier'' is a newspaper based in Konedobu, Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea.
It was established on 30 June 1969. Its parent company, The Herald and Weekly Times (later purchased by News Corp Australia), had acquired w ...
'' (National) (62.5%)
*UK and Ireland newspapers, published by subsidiaries of News International
News Corp UK & Ireland Limited (trading as News UK, formerly News International and NI Group) is a British newspaper publisher, and a wholly owned subsidiary of the American mass media conglomerate News Corp. It is the current publisher of ...
Ltd.
**News Group Newspapers Ltd.
***'' The Sun'' (published in Scotland as '' The Scottish Sun'' and in Ireland as '' The Irish Sun'')
****''The Sun on Sunday''
**Times Newspapers Ltd.
***''The Sunday Times
''The Sunday Times'' is a British newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of News UK, wh ...
''
***''The Times
''The Times'' is a British Newspaper#Daily, daily Newspaper#National, national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its s ...
''
***'' The Times Literary Supplement''
*US newspapers and magazines
**The ''New York Post
The ''New York Post'' (''NY Post'') is a conservative daily tabloid newspaper published in New York City. The ''Post'' also operates NYPost.com, the celebrity gossip site PageSix.com, and the entertainment site Decider.com.
It was establishe ...
''
*** Community Newspaper Group
**** '' The Brooklyn Paper''
**** '' Bronx Times-Reporter''
**** ''Brooklyn Courier-Life''
**** ''TimesLedger Newspapers
The TimesLedger Newspapers is a chain of paid circulation weekly newspapers covering news, sports and events of concern to residents of the borough of Queens, New York. The company's flagship paper is the ''Bayside Times'', which was founded in ...
''
**Dow Jones & Company
Dow Jones & Company, Inc. is an American publishing firm owned by News Corp and led by CEO Almar Latour.
The company publishes '' The Wall Street Journal'', '' Barron's'', ''MarketWatch'', ''Mansion Global'', ''Financial News'' and '' Private ...
***Consumer Media Group
****''The Wall Street Journal
''The Wall Street Journal'' is an American business-focused, international daily newspaper based in New York City, with international editions also available in Chinese and Japanese. The ''Journal'', along with its Asian editions, is published ...
''
****''Wall Street Journal Europe''
****''Wall Street Journal Asia''
****'' Barron's'' – weekly financial markets magazine.
****Marketwatch
MarketWatch is a website that provides financial information, business news, analysis, and stock market data. Along with '' The Wall Street Journal'' and '' Barron's'', it is a subsidiary of Dow Jones & Company, a property of News Corp.
Hist ...
– Financial news and information website.
****'' Far Eastern Economic Review''
***Enterprise Media Group
****Dow Jones Newswires
Dow Jones & Company, Inc. is an American publishing firm owned by News Corp and led by CEO Almar Latour.
The company publishes '' The Wall Street Journal'', '' Barron's'', ''MarketWatch'', ''Mansion Global'', ''Financial News'' and '' Private ...
– global, real-time news and information provider.
****Factiva
Factiva is a business information and research tool owned by Dow Jones & Company. Factiva aggregates content from both licensed and free sources. Providing organizations with search, alerting, dissemination, and other information management ...
– provides business news and information together with content delivery tools and services.
**** Dow Jones Indexes – stock market indexes and indicators, including the Dow Jones Industrial Average
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA), Dow Jones, or simply the Dow (), is a stock market index of 30 prominent companies listed on stock exchanges in the United States.
The DJIA is one of the oldest and most commonly followed equity index ...
.
****Dow Jones Financial Information Services – produces databases, electronic media, newsletters, conferences, directories, and other information services on specialised markets and industry sectors.
****Betten Financial News – leading Dutch language financial and economic news service.
***''Local Media Group''
****Ottaway Community Newspapers – 8 daily and 15 weekly regional newspapers.
***STOXX (33%)- joint venture with Deutsche Boerse and SWG Group for the development and distribution of Dow Jones STOXX indices.
*** Vedomosti (33%) – Russia's leading financial newspaper (joint venture with Financial Times
The ''Financial Times'' (''FT'') is a British daily newspaper printed in broadsheet and published digitally that focuses on business and economic current affairs. Based in London, England, the paper is owned by a Japanese holding company, Nik ...
and Independent Media).
*** SmartMoney
** The Timesledger Newspapers of Queens, New York:
***''Bayside Times, Whitestone Times, Flushing Times, Little Neck Ledger, Jamaica Times, Astoria Times, Forest Hills Ledger''
**The ''Courier-Life'' Newspapers in Brooklyn
**'' The Brooklyn Paper''
**''Caribbean Life''
**''Flatbush Jewish Journal''
Magazines
*U.S.A.
**'' SmartSource Magazine'' (weekly Sunday newspaper coupon insert)
**'' The Weekly Standard''
*Australia
**Alpha Magazine
**Australian Country Style
**Australian Golf Digest
**Australian Good Taste
** Big League
**BCME
**Delicious
**Donna Hay
**Fast Fours
** GQ (Australia)
**Gardening Australia
**InsideOut (Aust)
**Lifestyle Pools
**Live to Ride
**Notebook
**Overlander 4WD
**Modern Boating
**Modern Fishing
**Parents
**Pure Health
**Super Food Ideas
**Truck Australia
**Truckin' Life
**twowheels
**twowheels scooter
** Vogue (Australia)
**Vogue Entertaining & Travel
** Vogue Living
*UK
**Inside Out magazine
See also
* List of assets owned by News Corporation
*List of conglomerates
A conglomerate is a combination of multiple business entities operating in entirely different industries under one corporate group, usually involving a parent company and many subsidiaries.
Conglomerates are typically large and multinational ...
References
External links
*
News Corp
at ''Bloomberg Businessweek
''Bloomberg Businessweek'', previously known as ''BusinessWeek'', is an American weekly business magazine published fifty times a year. Since 2009, the magazine is owned by New York City-based Bloomberg L.P. The magazine debuted in New York City ...
''
*
News Corporation
collected news and commentary at ''The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
''
News Corp. Holdings and Timeline
at '' Columbia Journalism Review'', as of December 24, 2010
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:News Corporation (1980-2013)
Fox Corporation
Defunct mass media companies of Australia
Defunct mass media companies of the United States
Defunct companies based in New York City
Companies based in Manhattan
Companies formerly listed on the Australian Securities Exchange
Companies formerly listed on the Nasdaq
Companies formerly listed on the New York Stock Exchange
Conglomerate companies of the United States
Mass media companies based in New York City
Multinational companies based in New York City
Publishing companies based in New York City
Australian companies established in 1980
American companies disestablished in 2013
2004 establishments in New York City
2013 disestablishments in New York (state)
Conglomerate companies established in 2004
Mass media companies established in 1980
Mass media companies established in 2004
Mass media companies disestablished in 2013
Mass media companies of the United States
Conservative media in the United States