News Corp
| File:1211 Avenue of the Americas.jpg Headquarters located in Manhattan, New York City | |
| News Corp | |
| Company type | Public |
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| ISIN | |
| Industry | Media |
| Predecessor | News Corporation |
| Founded | June 28, 2013 |
| Founder | Rupert Murdoch |
| Headquarters | 1211 Avenue of the Americas, , United States |
Area served | Global |
Key people |
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| Products |
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| Revenue | Increase Template:US$ (2025) |
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| Total assets | Decrease Template:US$ (2025) |
| Total equity | Increase Template:US$ (2025) |
| Owner | Lachlan Murdoch (33% voting power) |
Number of employees | 22,300 (2025) |
| Subsidiaries | List of subsidiaries |
| Website | newscorp |
The current iteration of News Corporation, operating under the trade name News Corp, is a U.S.-based media and publishing enterprise with its headquarters situated at 1211 Avenue of the Americas in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. Established on June 28, 2013, as a demerger from the original News Corporation—whose legal successor became 21st Century Fox—News Corp's operations span digital real estate platforms, news media outlets, book publishing, and cable television services. Among its principal holdings are Dow Jones & Company, publisher of The Wall Street Journal; News UK, responsible for The Sun and The Times; News Corp Australia; the real estate websites managed by REA Group, including realestate.com.au and realtor.com; along with the book publisher HarperCollins.
Both News Corp and 21st Century Fox emerged as successors to the original News Corporation, which encompassed entities such as Fox Entertainment Group and other media assets. The corporate restructuring designated 21st Century Fox as the legal continuation of the original firm, while News Corp was created as a separate entity through a stock division. Since March 2019, the Murdoch family has retained control over Fox Corporation, which holds 21st Century Fox's national broadcast, news, and sports divisions. In September 2023, founder Rupert Murdoch declared his intention to resign from his role as chairman of News Corp by November.
Formation
On June 28, 2012, Rupert Murdoch revealed plans to separate the publishing segment of News Corporation into a newly established publicly traded company. He explained that this division would "unlock the true value of both companies," allowing investors to benefit from dedicated management teams and tailored strategic directions. This decision came in the aftermath of several scandals during 2011 that had negatively impacted News Corporation's public image.
At that time, Robert Thomson, then serving as editor of The Wall Street Journal, was appointed as the first chief operating officer. While Murdoch remained chairman and retained shares, he stepped away from day-to-day executive duties as CEO. Thomson highlighted a commitment to nurturing an entrepreneurial culture within the established media firm and prioritizing innovative business models centered on its content. The company's emblem, introduced on May 28, 2013, incorporates handwriting inspired by Murdoch’s own script.
The board of News Corp authorized the spin-off on May 24, 2013, with shareholder approval following on June 11. Trading for News Corp’s class B shares commenced on the Australian Securities Exchange on June 19, 2013, opening near $15 per share—slightly below market expectations—and subsequently declining by 3% to $14.55 per share. This placed the company's valuation at approximately $7.9 billion USD. The separation was completed on June 28, with shareholders receiving one new share for every four shares previously held in the original News Corp.
The new entity began trading on the Nasdaq stock exchange under the ticker "NWS" on July 1, 2013. Concurrently, the former News Corporation—containing media assets like Fox Entertainment Group and 20th Century Fox—was rebranded as 21st Century Fox.
Post-Division Developments
On September 4, 2013, News Corp divested the Dow Jones Local Media Group, which included 33 regional newspapers, selling it to Newcastle Investment Corp., an entity connected to Fortress Investment Group, for $87 million. These publications were managed by GateHouse Media, a Fortress-owned company. CEO Robert Thomson remarked that these newspapers did not align strategically with the company's evolving asset portfolio. Subsequently, GateHouse filed for prepackaged Chapter 11 bankruptcy on September 27, 2013, to reorganize its debt related to the acquisition and successfully exited bankruptcy by November 26, 2013.
Later that year, on December 20, 2013, News Corp acquired the Dublin-based social news agency Storyful—founded by journalist Mark Little—for €18 million (approximately $25 million). Storyful’s expertise lay in identifying and authenticating user-generated content from social media channels. CEO Robert Thomson emphasized Storyful as a vital digital asset instrumental in shaping opportunities within the shifting media environment.
On May 2, 2014, News Corp expanded its publishing portfolio by acquiring romance novel publisher Harlequin Enterprises from Torstar for $415 million. The transaction was finalized on August 1, with Harlequin operating under News Corp’s HarperCollins division as a subsidiary.
Furthering its digital real estate presence, News Corp purchased Move, Inc., owner of Realtor.com, on September 30, 2014. Move was partially owned by News Corp Australia’s publicly traded REA Group.
In late 2014 and early 2015, News Corp broadened its footprint in India by investing $30 million in real estate platform ProTiger in November 2014, acquiring financial planning website BigDecisions.com in December 2014, and purchasing Indian media company VCCircle in March 2015.
October 2015 saw News Corp divest its digital education brand Amplify to private investors backed by management. In June 2016, it acquired British radio broadcaster Wireless Group (formerly known as UTV Media) for $296 million.
In January 2020, News Corp exchanged its video advertising marketplace Unruly for a 6.91% ownership stake in Tremor Video. On July 31 of the same year, James Murdoch resigned from the News Corp board due to differences over editorial direction and corporate strategy.
On February 4, 2022, News Corp was targeted by a cyberattack linked to China that compromised journalists’ email accounts.
In October 2022, Rupert Murdoch formed a special committee to evaluate reuniting Fox and News Corp—companies separated since their spin-off in 2013—but abandoned these plans by January 2023 due to shareholder objections.
Facing declines in revenue and profits, News Corp announced a reduction of roughly 5% of its workforce in February 2023.
In September 2023, Rupert Murdoch declared his intention to retire from the boards of both News Corp and Fox Corporation effective November; his son Lachlan Murdoch is set to succeed him.
An annual shareholder meeting conducted via webcast on November 20, 2024, considered eliminating the dual-class share structure following a proposal from activist investor Starboard Value advocating equal voting rights per share. The measure required approval from both voting and non-voting shareholders but was ultimately defeated. This governance matter is intertwined with ongoing family succession disputes among the Murdoch siblings.
In June 2025, News Corp extended CEO Robert Thomson’s contract through June 2030.
Succession
In September 2024, Rupert Murdoch attempted to revoke voting privileges from his children, except for Lachlan, in accordance with the irrevocable family trust, with the objective of maintaining conservative influence over the media enterprises. The other siblings—Prudence MacLeod, Elisabeth Murdoch, and James Murdoch—are known to hold more centrist perspectives. On December 9, 2024, a probate court in Nevada ruled against Rupert and Lachlan Murdoch, determining that their efforts to modify the trust were conducted in bad faith.
Assets
News Corp consists of the newspaper and book publishing divisions formerly part of News Corporation, along with its primary business segment: digital real estate advertising platforms.
See also
- Succession of Rupert Murdoch, a 2024 court case