News Corp’s SEC filing during its attempts to split into two companies showed that the it lost $2.1 billion on the publishing side this year.
The non-cash loss is attributed to the closing of the News of the World as well as “a write-down of New News Corporation’s goodwill of approximately $1.3 billion and a write-down of the indefinite-lived intangible assets (primarily newspaper mastheads and distribution networks).” The company also closed the Daily this month.
News Corp revenue fell from $9.1 billion last year to $8.65 billion this year.
While this is hardly good news, it’s clear that News Corp is doing the right thing in splitting the two companies. Its entertainment properties, like mortuaries, will always make money provided those inside are doing their jobs. Its news properties, on the other hand, are suffering from an extremely volatile media market and, as evidenced by the Daily debacle, nobody in news knows what they’re doing and, if they do, they’re lying.