Avatar to deliver profit boost to News Corp
News Corp’s third quarter profits are expected to be boosted by the record-breaking 3D movie Avatar.
It comes as the media group reported a profit rise to US$254m ($286.4m) in the second quarter – the three months to the end of December – compared to the US$6.4bn loss it made a year earlier. Its revenue also rose 10 per cent to US$8.7bn.
The company’s filmed entertainment operations, which includes Twentieth Century Fox – the maker of James Cameron’s Avatar, returned a profit of US$324m, compared to US$112m in corresponding the 2008 period.
The division has been buoyed by DVD sales of movies including Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs, X-Men Origins: Wolverine and Night at the Museum.
News Corp is expected to profit from tickets sales for Avatar in the current quarter, which is now the highest grossing film of all time. It has so far raked in $US2bn since it launched in December.
In a statement, News Corp CEO Rupert Murdoch, said: “We continue to reap the benefits from the restructuring and cost containment measures we instituted before the downturn began.”
Meanwhile, he added that talks are continuing with other companies to drive its plans to introduce pay walls to its news sites.
News Corp’s Australian newspaper business, which includes The Daily Telegraph and The Australian, reported lower second quarter operating income compared to a year earlier, largely attributed to a 5 per cent decline in advertising revenues, particularly in the classifieds.
Tim Burrowes founded Mumbrella in 2008. He worked on Mumbrella until 2021. At various points he was editor, content director and editor-at-large.
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