News Corp “fully intends to be across all tablet platforms”

Rupert Murdoch spoke about tablets such as the iPad at a media debate in Sydney earlier today, saying that they are “a perfect platform” for up-to-date News Corporation content.

He said that News Corp has “tens of thousands of readers” through apps for the publications such as the Wall Street Journal and The Times.

He also added that he thought Apple would sell many more iPads than previously predicted: “It looks like they will sell around 15 million iPads this calendar year, and more than 40 million by 2012. And the iPad is just one of many tablet or slate computers in the pipeline. News Corp fully intends to be across all those platforms too.”

Without giving exact numbers, he also insisted that the level of subscription for The Times and Sunday Times websites was strong, and hailed the paywall concept recently implemented as “the start of a new business model for the internet”.

“The argument that information wants to be free is only said by those who want it for free,” said Murdoch.

Early unofficial reports suggest that 15,000 paying users have subscribed to the Times website, and that 12,500 have downloaded the iPad app.