Rupert Murdoch has said that his media company, News Corporation, will lose £69 million as a result of the terrorist attacks in the United States.
Speaking at the company’s annual meeting in Adelaide, Australia, he told shareholders: “Advertising is going through a very uncertain time. We have been in a recessionary period for the last six or eight months and following the events of 11 September, things suddenly became very much worse.”
He confirmed that earnings at News International, the group’s UK newspaper business which includes the Sun, News of the World and the Times would be below expectations. “Last year’s financial results were up about 10% on the prior year. We originally budgeted for another 10%, whereas the increase this year will be flatter than that,” he said.
Despite a “nasty increase in costs” across the company, Murdoch said: “Revenue bookings for both our TV stations and TV network have been stronger than in the past several months and strong rays of sunshine are appearing.”
He also spoke of BSkyB’s success with Sky Digital: “There’s no one in the UK who can touch it and it’s not slowing down,” he said. “Unlike newspapers or broadcasting television, 95% of the revenue comes from the viewers and not from the advertisers. This adds a tremendous dimension to the company.”
