News Corporation has announced a net loss of $246.8 million for the July to September quarter of this year, despite a 10% increase in revenues year on year.
Commenting on the results, Rupert Murdoch, chairman and chief executive officer said: “This was our 15th consecutive quarter reporting year-on-year operating income and revenue growth, and we delivered strong gains across nearly all of our operating segments.”
In the UK, News Corp’s newspaper division suffered a decline in operating income, with the company attributing the loses to lower advertising revenues and increased costs from the Times’ format change.
News Corp recently purchased American online gaming firm IGN Entertainment, gaining access to around 28 million male internet users, with sites covering video games, films, music, sports, cars and girls (see News Corp Buys Online Gaming Firm).
The deal, worth $650 million, sees IGN incorporated into News Corp’s Fox Interactive Media Unit, extending Rupert Murdoch’s online activities to around 70 million users a month, with the corporation now producing 12 billion pages of content each month.