News Corp, the international conglomerate led by Rupert Murdoch, has reported a slight decline in digital subscriptions at its Australian publications, erasing recent gains, despite otherwise robust financial results. This is according to data published in the company's annual report on Thursday, as reported by infohub.kz.
The News Corp Australia division, which includes The Australian, Daily Telegraph, and Herald Sun, saw its digital subscription numbers fall from 1,166,000 to 1,162,000 during the financial year. This marks a reversal of the momentum that had seen the Australian division grow its digital subscriptions in recent years as it transitions away from its traditional newspaper base.
News Corp's broader news media unit, which includes The Sun and The Times in London, as well as the New York Post, recorded mixed results. Advertising revenue remained under pressure, falling 2% during the year to 30 June. The division also incurred costs linked to the launch of News Corp's newest newspaper, the California Post, which is the Los Angeles outpost of the New York Post and is edited by Australian News Corp veteran Nick Papps.
News Corp chief executive Robert Thomson used the release of the financial results to criticize AI models that "pilfer and profit from our work," as media companies worldwide seek compensation for the use of their content.
"Without our journalists, our authors, our data, our brands and our professional expertise, users would be drowning in a slimy sea of AI slop," Thomson said. "We will pursue those pilferers, and companies that are clients of these crass kleptomaniacs should know they are patently in possession of stolen goods."
News Corp has commercial agreements in place with OpenAI and Meta. These comments come amid contested plans by the Albanese government to expand its news bargaining incentive, which would require tech giants to compensate media outlets for the news on their platforms, either through making commercial deals or paying a higher levy.