AIM Group » Australia

Australia battle: Quicksales drops all fees, tackles market-leader Gumtree head-on

Ross Hoddinott — Tue, 30 Apr 2013 22:03:26 +0000

UPDATED with Gumtree and Quicksales comments; correcting numbers of listings

How does a two-year-old general merchandise site take on a nine-year-old, well-entrenched site that’s owned by one of the largest classified companies in the world?

Easy. It makes everything free just as the competition is raising its prices.

That’s what’s happened in Australia, where Quicksales.com.au today (May 1) announced that all ads on the site would be free. No charges for any listings, even for commercial sellers.

“[We are now] 100 percent free to sell across the board – no exclusions, no disclaimers and no question that Quicksales is the best value marketplace in Australia, if not the world!,” the announcement said. “As other websites and suppliers put their prices up, Quicksales is not just putting prices down but abolishing them all together. The 2 percent final value fee previously in place has been removed and Quicksales is now proudly a 100 percent free marketplace. Whether choosing to list as a classified, auction or buy now, from today you will no longer pay a final value fee meaning 100% of the proceeds from the sale go directly into your pocket.”

It’s a bold move to compete with Gumtree and EBay, the two entrenched, long-established competitors — corporate cousins — that heavily dominate the online general merchandise category in Australia.

“We believe there’s an opportunity to offer a completely free selling platform to Australians. They shouldn’t have to pay for the privilege of selling online,” James Curtain, GM of Quicksales, told the AIM Group in an interview.

“We want to overtake Gumtree. That’s why we’re here and that’s our ultimate objective. We have to make up for lost time. They’ve been in the market longer than we have. [This battle is] one that’s going to benefit Australians with better buying and selling than anywhere else.”

It won’t be an easy fight.

Gumtree has at least a three-to-one advantage in unique users over Quicksales. Users spend more time on site at Gumtree than Quicksales, and the site has been in business almost 10 years in Australia vs. about two for Quicksales. It was launched in 2000 in the U.K. by two Londoners who wanted to target expatriates from Australia, New Zealand and South Africa who were living in the U.K. It grew steadily, expanding into Australia in 2004 (although the site itself says 2007) and EBay bought it in 2005. Gumtree has about 1.6 million listings on site, while Quicksales reports about 2 million listings.

Gumtree and EBay complement each other in Australia, with Gumtree remaining largely free in most categories, although it offers typical upsells such as home-page gallery placement (A$50 for seven days, depending on category); “top ads” ($25); highlights $5, and “urgent” flags ($10). Gumtree recently added substantial fees for auto dealers, where it recently “improved the level of professionalism and services that a business seller would require,” according to marketing executive Nat Thomas. Thomas said the site would focus its attention and revenue-generation efforts primarily on the automotive category in the months ahead.

“It still remains absolutely free for anyone [other than auto dealers] to post an ad on Gumtree and that will remain the case going forward,” he said.

Gumtree allows changes in ads for a brief period after they are posted, but if they are edited after a few hours the site charges a combination editing and “bump-up” fee, because the edited ad is placed at the top of the listings in its category in the location where the product or service is being offered.

EBay in Australia, a companion site to Gumtree, charges $8 to $50 for classified listings and additional fees on completion of sales, typically 9.9 percent of the sale value to a maximum of $250. The sales-completion fee was raised effective May 1 from 7.9 percent.

The EBay rate increases were accompanied by an increase in the number of free listings permitted, from 30 to 40. Fees for listings after the first 40 will cost $1.50 for items costing less than $100 and $3.50 for items costing $100 or more.

(Lifehacker covered the increase in this article.)

Gumtree offers essentially two ways to sell, through telephone contact or an email transmission (without giving out the seller’s or buyer’s email address). It’s here that Quicksales hopes to differentiate itself.

“We support the transaction with ‘buy now,’ ‘run an auction,’ ‘make an offer’ and other contact features,” Curtain said. “We are providing more value … . We can help you sell it online for free, not just ‘list’ it. And that’s a key difference.”

The “make an offer” selection is not yet a full-blown negotiation platform, but Curtain said the site expects to go live with negotiation capabilities by early June.

Quicksales is owned by the highly profitable Carsales.com.au, a publicly traded company (ASX: CRZ) that tried last August to license the TradingPost.com.au business from Telstra, the national phone company that was operating Trading Post as part of its Sensis search business. TradingPost.com.au was an outgrowth of the print Trading Post publications which Telstra bought in 2004 for A$636 million. It then shut down the print publications, but lost traction with the online business. The deal for TradingPost.com.au was blocked in December by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, which ruled that the automotive content on TradingPost.com.au would cause a “substantial lessening of competition through the removal of a close and effective competitor of Carsales.” The ACCC said the general merchandise listings on TradingPost and Quicksales had no impact on its ruling, which was based exclusively on the competitive impact of the automotive combination.

(Telstra is apparently still trying to sell or license the TradingPost brand, but after the decision by the ACCC it became clear that Carsales was unlikely to take another run at TradingPost.)

Greg Roebuck, CEO of Carsales, has taken pokes at Gumtree and EBay because they are foreign owned.

“In recent years, the general classifieds and auction space has been increasingly dominated by a single overseas-owned operation,” he said when the ruling was issued. “In association with Quicksales.com.au, a revitalized TradingPost would have delivered stronger choice to consumers and businesses alike, as well as keeping both taxes and employment in Australia.”

EBay, of course, is a Nasdaq-traded company based in San Jose, Calif., with a market capitalization of about $68 billion. The company owns a wide range of classified brands worldwide, including Gumtree, Kijiji, Ala Maula and IBazar in Latin America, and EBayClassifieds in the United States. It also owns 28 percent of Craigslist Inc. EBay is focusing increasingly on mobile commerce, and consistently reports substantial growth in its sales through mobile devices.

Thomas said Gumtree has “more than doubled its business each year” since he joined the company in 2010, and doesn’t really focus on competitors despite the fact that “in Australia there is a very vibrant classifieds market across a number of verticals, as well as horizontals.”

“The story is, we’ve been growing incredibly quickly off the back of a very, very simple offering — a low-cost, high-value service to users,” he said.

Peter M. Zollman of the AIM Group contributed to this article.

Hollands returns to Aussie newspaper group

AIMGroup — Mon, 29 Apr 2013 02:36:12 +0000

Mark Hollands, former CEO of PANPA (the Pacific Area Newspaper Publishers Association), is back at The Newspaper Works in Australia following the resignation of Tony Hale.

The most consistent occupant of the role following a succession of changes, Hollands engineered himself out of the job last year when he helped oversee the merger of the two organisations.

Originally an advertising-focused organization, The Newspaper Works is owned by Australia’s five biggest newspaper publishing companies.

Hollands started immediately after Hale departed suddenly earlier this month. Newspaper Works chairman Kim Williams, CEO of News Limited, thanked Hale for his contribution to the industry. Hale had been a director of Clemenger BBDO prior to joining The Newspaper Works. He was previously director of client service at The Campaign palace, and ran his own Sydney advertising agency.

Williams said Hollands would take the organization forward and would oversee the introduction of a new readership measurement system, The Readership Works.

Hollands has more than three decades of media experience including stints as The Australian’s foreign editor, technology editor and circulation manager. He was also GM of content at Ozemail and MD of dot-com start-up Beenz.com. In 2006 he was appointed Dow Jones Asia Pacific director of sales, and he became CEO of PANPA in 2008.

“It is essential the sector has strong representation ensuring society values our products and understands the transformation that is blending valuable print assets with exciting new digital ventures and innovations in delivering refreshed offerings to a vast community of users,” Hollands said in a statement. “[I am] excited to join the team currently bringing The Readership Works to market.”

Hollands was not available when GXpress called, so we weren’t able to ask him whether he had written the crime thriller which was in his plans when he left last year.

— Peter Coleman, GXpress
Reprinted with permission

Ozzie Carsales buys into Brazilian car site

AIMGroup — Wed, 17 Apr 2013 23:55:33 +0000

Carsales.com, the Australian automotive site that lost out in its bid to take over Trading Post in Australia, is taking its money and moving elsewhere.
The company announced today that it will take a 30-percent stake in WebMotors, the leading automotive site in Brazil. Last month, Carsales announced plans to buy a 19.9 percent stake in ICar Asia, which operates in Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia.
Brazil is a much larger automotive market than Australia, with 2013 sales of 4 million new cars expected — about four times the total in Australia.
“Brazil is a highly attractive market with favorable demographics, rising disposable incomes and rapidly growing Internet penetration,” Greg Roebuck, Carsales.com Ltd. CEO and managing director, said in the announcement. “WebMotors is the No. 1 online automotive classifieds website in Brazil and delivers to Carsales an exciting opportunity to participate in this market.”
Banco Santander will retain 70 percent of WebMotors.
“Carsales is a best-in-class business and we are excited to take advantage of the opportunities that will arise when combining the expertise of Santander in financial services and the experience of Carsales in online classifieds,” said Santander EVP Felix Cardamone. “There is a strong complementarity of knowledge and we look forward to building on an already strong relationship.”
Carsales (ASX: CRZ) is investing 180 million Brazilian Reais, or about $90 million US / A$89 million. The proceeds will be used to fund growth of WebMotors. Completion of the deal is subject to negotiation of a final agreement and approval by both sides.
Carsales said WebMotors is profitable on an EBITDA basis and the deal will be accretive to Carsales’ earnings.

CarSales to take 20% stake in ICar Asia

Don Gasper — Fri, 15 Mar 2013 12:29:48 +0000

Carsales.com Ltd, the Australia-based classified company that offers automotive and general merchandise listings, is acquiring a 19.9 percent strategic stake in ICar Asia Ltd., owner of a network of automotive portals in ASEAN, the two companies announced yesterday.

The companies have forged a strategic partnership, with the Australian company investing A$13.4 million ($13.9 million U.S.) in ICar Asia and receiving the right to have a representative on its board. The deal values ICar Asia at about $70.2 million U.S.

ICar Asia has operations in Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia, reportedly reaching 1.5 million people every month. Its brands include ThaiCar.com and Autospinn.com in Thailand, Carlist.my and LiveLifeDrive.com in Malaysia and Mobil123.com in Indonesia.

Its chairman, Patrick Grove, said he was looking forward to working with the Carsales team to continue to accelerate ICar Asia’s growth.

Carsales CEO and Managing Director, Greg Roebuck, said: “The acquisition sees Carsales acquire a strategic stake in the leading portfolio of online automotive businesses across the high-growth ASEAN region. We look forward to developing a deeper relationship with ICar Asia in the future.”

Both companies are traded on the Australian Stock Exchange — CRZ for Carsales.com Ltd. and ICQ for ICar Asia Ltd.

The deal is subject to ICar Asia shareholder approval at the end of April and has a number of conditions. Among these, Carsales will not, for a period of up to two years, compete with ICar Asia in Thailand, Malaysia or Indonesia. ICar Asia will not, for a period of up to two years, issue shares to a global competitor of Carsales, which in turn will not increase its stake beyond 19.9 percent for a period of up to two years.

For further details, see the news release.

Aussies block Carsales-Trading Post deal

Ross Hoddinott — Thu, 20 Dec 2012 14:54:14 +0000

This is no surprise: The deal between Carsales.com.au and Telstra for Carsales to take over Trading Post has been blocked.

The Australian Competition and Consumer today ruled against Telstra’s agreement to license its TradingPost.com.au business to Carsales, calling the deal anti-competitive. But the ACCC made it clear that its objection had little to do with the combination of the Trading Post “stuff” business and the Quicksales section of Carsales.com.au — rather, it was all about, well, car sales.

“Carsales and Trading Post both supply online general merchandise and automotive classified advertising, but the ACCC’s concerns arise only in relation to automotive classifieds,” the ACCC said in its announcement.

Under the proposed transaction, Carsales would license the TradingPost.com.au brand and operate the TradingPost.com.au website for a confidential period, and would have an ability to acquire the brand at the end of the licence period.

The ACCC concluded that the proposed acquisition is likely to result in a substantial lessening of competition through the removal of a close and effective competitor of Carsales,” ACCC Chairman Rod Sims said.

Trading Post is a well established and high profile brand for automotive classifieds advertising and provides an important competitive constraint on Carsales. The proposed acquisition would significantly increase Carsales’ market power and competition would be substantially reduced to the detriment of automotive dealerships and private advertisers,” Mr. Sims said.

The proposed acquisition would have reduced the choice for advertisers by removing a significant competitor with an offer that is attractive to dealers and private advertisers, differing in important ways from the Carsales’ offer.”

The ACCC concluded that the proposed acquisition would increase the already high barriers to entry for the supply of online automotive classified advertising. By adding significant inventory and audience to its websites, the acquisition would also reinforce the network effects or ‘virtuous cycle’ that Carsales enjoys through having the largest inventory and audience in the market, and strengthen the advantages it gains from its vertical integration into the provision of services to car dealers.

The proposed acquisition would further lessen the ability of competing sites to impose a competitive constraint on Carsales, including by reducing their ability to attract inventory and audience,” Mr. Sims said.

The deal was proposed in August, and was immediately questioned by the ACCC.

Following today’s ruling, Telstra said it would “continue to consider its options as it moves to improve the profitability and competitiveness of the TradingPost brand.”

In a statement reported by the Australian Associated Press, Greg Roebuck, CEO of Carsales, pointed to EBay-owned Gumtree as a substantial competitor.

“In recent years, the general classifieds and auction space has been increasinglydominated by a single overseas-owned operation,” he said. “In association with Quicksales.com.au, a revitalized TradingPost would have delivered stronger choice to consumers and businesses alike, as well as keeping both taxes and employment in Australia.”

More background in our earlier coverage here, and in the AAP article here.

Consumer auto auction site opens in Oz

AIMGroup — Tue, 11 Dec 2012 19:25:29 +0000

Want to buy a car without ever revealing your name, gender or other personal information to a dealer? Or if you’re a dealer, do you want to sell more cars, typically at low prices and low margins but relatively quickly? There’s a new site in Australia that offers cars by “Dutch auction” that might fit the bill.

Dutch auctions are typically a “declining price” type of auction, in which an item is offered at a high price and the price is steadily reduced until a buyer accepts it. But DutchAuctionAuto.com.au in Australia works differently. The buyer defines the car he or she wants, sets a maximum price, and makes a deposit “to show dealers that you are a genuine committee buyer, not just another ‘tyre kicker’,” the site says. Ideally, bids roll in and the consumer takes the lowest one.

No sellers? Or no deal? The prospective buyer gets his or her deposit back. And the buyer’s contact information is not distributed. Or so the site says. It doesn’t say how many dealers are participating, or what the distribution is by state or region.

The Melbourne-based site was started by Shoshi Vorchheimer, a mother of four. Here’s the news release:

* * * *

A revolution in the car industry begins today with the launch of a breakthrough auction website that drives down prices, helping Australians get the best deal on a new car.

DutchAuctionAuto.com.au is the first website of its kind in Australia where the buyer posts the maximum price they’re prepared to pay for a new car while dealers compete for the sale by offering their lowest possible price.

Ms. Shoshi Vorchheimer, Director and Co-Founder of Dutch Auction Auto, says “the Dutch Auction model is a safe way to negotiate the price of a new car, without haggling or being exposed to pushy sales tactics.

“The dealer doesn’t know if you’re a man or a woman, old or young. For the first time – this website takes age and gender out of the negotiation process. With Dutch Auction Auto, consumers are empowered with the tools to effectively negotiate a new car purchase.”

For more information and to coordinate an interview with Ms Shoshi Vorchheimer please contact: Justin Kelly, Mercury Consulting on 0408 215 858 or Justin.Kelly@mercuryconsulting.com.au

News Corp. publishing dollars down 31 percent, Wall Street Journal only gain

Admin — Thu, 09 Aug 2012 12:43:58 +0000

News Corporation Reports Full Year Total Segment Operating Income of $5.4 Billion on Revenue of $33.7 Billion; Full Year Adjusted Total Segment Operating Income Increased 13% to $5.6 Billion

Fourth Quarter Total Segment Operating Income of $1.2 Billion on Revenue of $8.4 Billion

Full Year Highlights

Adjusted Total Segment Operating Income⁽¹⁾ increased 13% to $5.6 billion
Adjusted Earnings Per Share⁽²⁾ grew 19% to $1.41 per share
Company repurchased 260 million shares of Class A Common Stock for $4.6 billion of the $10 billion authorized
Company continued addressing non-consolidated ownership stakes, purchasing Fox Pan American Sports, selling NDS and announcing the intent to purchase the remaining ownership stake of ESPN STAR Sports, and Consolidated Media Holdings
Company announced intent to pursue separation of media and entertainment and publishing businesses

NEW YORK–(BUSINESS WIRE)–News Corporation (NASDAQ: NWS, NWSA; ASX: NWS, NWSLV) today reported financial results for the three months and full year ending June 30, 2012.

“adjusted net income and adjusted diluted earnings per share”

Commenting on the results, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Rupert Murdoch said:

“We are proud of the full year financial growth achieved over the last twelve months, led by our Cable Network Programming and Filmed Entertainment segments. Not only did we execute on our operating plan and deliver on our financial targets, we returned over $5 billion to shareholders through an aggressive buyback program and dividends. In addition, significant progress has been made in opportunistically addressing the Company’s non-consolidated assets, as demonstrated by the purchase of Fox Pan American Sports, the sale of NDS and the announced intention to purchase the remaining ownership stake of ESPN STAR Sports and Consolidated Media Holdings.

“Our Company has continued to innovate, grow and consistently adapt to the rapidly changing media industry landscape. We find ourselves in the middle of great change, driven by shifts in technology, consumer behavior, advertiser demands and economic uncertainty and change brings about great opportunity. News Corporation is in a strong operational, strategic and financial position, which should only be enhanced by the proposed separation of the media and entertainment and publishing businesses.”

Full Year Company Results

The Company reported annual revenue of $33.7 billion, a $301 million, or 1%, increase over the $33.4 billion of revenue reported a year ago. The annual revenue increase was led by 14% growth at the Company’s Cable Network Programming segment, partially offset by declines primarily at the Company’s Publishing and Other segments.

The Company reported annual total segment operating income⁽³⁾ of $5.4 billion compared to $4.9 billion reported a year ago. This increase was driven by operating income improvements at nearly all of the Company’s segments, led by a $535 million, or 19%, increase at the Cable Network Programming segment and a $205 million, or 22%, increase at the Filmed Entertainment segment. These improvements were partially offset by decreases at the Publishing segment, reflecting advertising weakness at the international newspaper and integrated marketing services businesses, and the absence of contributions from The News of the World. The full year results included a $224 million charge related to the costs of the ongoing investigations initiated upon the closure of The News of the World. The prior year results included a $125 million charge at the Company’s integrated marketing services business related to the settlement of litigation. Excluding these charges from both years, respectively, this year’s adjusted total segment operating income of $5.6 billion increased $628 million, or 13%, from $5.0 billion in the prior year.

The Company reported annual net income of $1.2 billion ($0.47 per share), compared to net income of $2.7 billion ($1.04 per share) reported in the prior year. The full year results included a $3.0 billion pre-tax impairment and restructuring charge primarily related to the Company’s publishing businesses. This charge was partially offset by a $270 million pre-tax gain from the Company’s participation in British Sky Broadcasting’s (“BSkyB”) share repurchase program, which is reflected in Equity earnings of affiliates. The prior year results included a $254 million loss, net of tax resulting from the Company’s sale of Myspace. Excluding the net income effects of these items, the charge related to the investigations in the U.K., and comparable items in both years, adjusted earnings per share was $1.41 compared with the adjusted year-ago result of $1.18.

Fourth Quarter Company Results

The Company reported quarterly revenue of $8.4 billion, as compared to the $9.0 billion of revenue reported a year ago. The 15% growth at the Company’s Cable Network Programming segment was more than offset by declines at the Company’s remaining segments.

The Company reported quarterly total segment operating income of $1.2 billion, a $167 million decrease compared to $1.4 billion reported a year ago. The increase at the Cable Network Programming segment of $161 million, or 26%, was more than offset by decreases at the Company’s remaining segments. The quarterly results included a $57 million charge related to the costs of the ongoing investigations initiated upon the closure of The News of the World.

The Company reported quarterly net loss of $1.6 billion (-$0.64 per share) as compared to net income of $683 million ($0.26 per share) reported in the prior year quarter. The quarterly results included a $2.9 billion pre-tax impairment and restructuring charge primarily related to the Company’s publishing businesses, as well as $15 million of pre-tax loss in Other, net, which includes a loss on the sale of property in the U.K. These charges were partially offset by a $115 million pre-tax gain from the Company’s participation in the BSkyB share repurchase program. The prior year quarterly results included a $254 million loss, net of tax resulting from the Company’s sale of Myspace. Excluding the net income effects of these items, the charge related to the investigations in the U.K., and comparable items in both years, quarterly adjusted earnings per share was $0.32 compared with the adjusted prior year quarter result of $0.35.


(1)		Adjusted total segment operating income excludes a $224 million pre-tax charge related to the costs of the ongoing investigations initiated upon the closure of The News of the World in fiscal year 2012 and a $125 million pre-tax charge at the Company’s integrated marketing services business related to the settlement of litigation in fiscal year 2011.
(2)		The Company reported diluted earnings per share of $0.47 in fiscal year 2012. See page 17 for a reconciliation of reported net income and earnings per share to adjusted net income and adjusted earnings per share.
(3)		Total segment operating income is a non-GAAP financial measure. See page 14 for a description of total segment operating income and for a reconciliation of total segment operating income to income before income tax expense.

REVIEW OF SEGMENT OPERATING RESULTS

Total Segment Operating Income (Loss)	3 Months Ended						12 Months Ended
	June 30,						June 30,
	2012			2011			2012			2011
	US $ Millions

Cable Network Programming	$	792		$	631		$	3,295		$	2,760
Filmed Entertainment		120			210			1,132			927
Television		213			233			706			681
Direct Broadcast Satellite Television		89			145			254			232
Publishing		139			270			597			864
Other		(168	)		(137	)		(605	)		(614	)
Total Segment Operating Income *	$	1,185		$	1,352		$	5,379		$	4,850

*		The three months ended June 30, 2012 include litigation settlement charges of $57 million. Excluding these charges, adjusted total segment operating income is $1,242 million in the three months ended June 30, 2012.

		The twelve months ended June 30, 2012 and 2011 include litigation settlement charges of $224 million and $125 million, respectively. Excluding these charges, adjusted total segment operating income is $5,603 million and $4,975 million in the twelve months ended June 30, 2012 and 2011, respectively.

CABLE NETWORK PROGRAMMING

Full Year Segment Results

Cable Network Programming reported annual segment operating income of $3.3 billion, a $535 million, or 19%, increase over the prior year, driven by a 14% increase in revenue. Operating income contributions from the domestic channels increased 21%, underpinned by growth at the Regional Sports Networks (“RSNs”), Fox News Channel and the FX Network. The Company’s international cable channels grew earnings 16%, reflecting strong growth in Latin America and Asia.

Affiliate revenue growth of 12% at the domestic cable channels primarily reflects higher rates at all domestic networks, led by growth at the RSNs and Fox News Channel. International cable channels’ affiliate revenues increased 27% over the prior year. Nearly two-thirds of the international increase primarily reflects organic growth at the Fox International Channels in Latin America and Asia, with the remaining portion of the international affiliate revenue growth attributable to the consolidation of the Fox Pan American Sports network.

Advertising revenue at the domestic cable channels grew 9% in fiscal 2012 over the prior year, reflecting growth at nearly all domestic networks led by growth at the FX Network, Fox News Channel and the National Geographic Channels. The international cable channels’ advertising revenue grew 13% over the prior year, primarily due to improving advertising markets and viewership trends in Latin America, Asia and India.

In fiscal 2012, expenses at Cable Network Programming grew 11% over the prior year, due to increased programming costs including rights fees for the launch of the Ultimate Fighting Championship, as well as increased expenses associated with the consolidation of the Fox Pan American Sports network and the launch of new sports networks in Brazil and San Diego.

Fourth Quarter Segment Results

Cable Network Programming reported quarterly segment operating income of $792 million, a $161 million, or 26%, increase over the prior year quarter, driven by a 15% increase in revenue. Operating income contributions from the domestic channels increased 24%, led by growth at Fox News Channel and the FX Network. The Company’s international cable channels grew earnings 31%, reflecting growth at both the Fox International Channels and STAR.

Affiliate revenue grew 16% and 31% at the domestic and international cable channels, respectively. Domestic network growth reflects higher rates across all networks, led by growth at the RSNs and Fox News Channel. Nearly 45% of the international cable channels’ affiliate revenue increase was led by organic growth at the Fox International Channels in Latin America and Asia. The remaining portion of the international affiliate revenue growth reflects the consolidation of the Fox Pan American Sports network.

Advertising revenue at the domestic cable channels grew 5% in the quarter over the prior year period, led by growth at the RSNs and the National Geographic Channels. The international cable channels’ advertising revenue grew 18% over the prior year quarter, primarily due to improving advertising markets and viewership trends, with particular strength in India and Latin America, which benefitted from the consolidation of the Fox Pan American Sports network.

Expenses at Cable Network Programming grew 11% in the quarter over the prior year period, due to increased programming costs including rights fees reflecting the timing of games resulting from the NBA lockout and rights fees for the launch of the Ultimate Fighting Championship, as well as increased expenses associated with the consolidation of the Fox Pan American Sports network and the launch of new sports networks in Brazil and San Diego.

FILMED ENTERTAINMENT

Full Year Segment Results

Full year segment operating income increased $205 million, or 22%, over the prior year to $1.1 billion. The growth was driven by a strong release slate including the successful worldwide theatrical and home entertainment performances of Rise of the Planet of the Apes, Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked and The Descendants, and home entertainment performances of Rio, X-Men: First Class and Mr. Popper’s Penguins. The year also benefitted from increased operating profit at the television production studios led by the growth of digital distribution revenue from the licensing of content to Netflix and Amazon, as well as an increase in license fees for How I Met Your Mother.

Fourth Quarter Segment Results

Filmed Entertainment reported quarterly segment operating income of $120 million, compared to $210 million reported in the same period a year ago. The $90 million decline was due to lower theatrical and home entertainment revenues due to the timing, in the prior year quarter, of the successful worldwide theatrical performance of Rio (released at the beginning of the fiscal 2011 fourth quarter) and the home entertainment performance of Black Swan and The Chronicles of Narnia: Voyage of the Dawn Treader. Quarterly results also include theatrical release costs for the successful releases of Prometheus, which has grossed over $300 million in worldwide box office to date, and of Ice Age: Continental Drift, which was released domestically after fiscal year end and has grossed over $715 million in worldwide box office to date, setting records for highest opening weekend ever in many international territories.

TELEVISION

Full Year Segment Results

Full year segment operating income of $706 million, increased $25 million versus a year ago. The increase was driven by a doubling of retransmission consent revenues, partially offset by lower political advertising revenue at the local television stations and the absence of the prior year’s broadcast of the National Football League Super Bowl XLV. Excluding the impact of the Super Bowl broadcast, national advertising revenues increased over the prior year reflecting the stronger fall schedule led by The X-Factor and New Girl being partially offset by lower American Idol ratings.

Fourth Quarter Segment Results

Television reported quarterly segment operating income of $213 million, a decrease of $20 million versus the same period a year ago. This decline reflects a doubling of retransmission consent revenues being more than offset by lower national advertising revenues primarily driven by lower American Idol ratings.

DIRECT BROADCAST SATELLITE TELEVISION

Full Year Segment Results

SKY Italia generated annual segment operating income of $254 million, a $22 million, or 9%, increase compared to the prior year. The improvement was due to lower programming costs resulting from the absence of FIFA World Cup costs and lower marketing costs related to the prior year’s rebranding campaign. Local currency revenue for the year was consistent with the prior year. SKY Italia’s year-end subscriber base declined to 4.9 million due to the net reduction of approximately 71,000 subscribers during the year, reflecting the continued challenging economic environment in Italy.

Fourth Quarter Segment Results

SKY Italia generated quarterly segment operating income of $89 million, compared to $145 million of operating income reported in the same period a year ago. Quarterly local currency revenue was down 5% from the corresponding period of the prior year driven by lower subscription revenues reflecting a lower subscriber base. The quarter also reflects increased expenses related to subscriber retention efforts. SKY Italia experienced a net reduction of approximately 42,000 subscribers during the quarter.

PUBLISHING

Full Year Segment Results

Publishing reported annual segment operating income of $597 million, a $267 million decrease compared to the $864 million reported a year ago, which included a $125 million litigation settlement charge at the integrated marketing services business. Excluding this charge, segment operating income decreased $392 million from last year driven by advertising revenue declines at the Australian newspapers, integrated marketing services business and U.K. newspapers, as well as the absence of contributions from the closure of The News of the Worldin the U.K. The decline was partially offset by improved contributions from Dow Jones, driven by higher profits at the Wall Street Journal.

Fourth Quarter Segment Results

Publishing reported quarterly segment operating income of $139 million, a $131 million decrease compared to the $270 million reported in the same period a year ago, reflecting lower advertising revenues at the international newspapers and integrated marketing services business, as well as the absence of contributions from the closure of The News of the World in the U.K. The quarter results also reflect a litigation settlement charge related to sales of e-books.

OTHER

Full Year Segment Results

The Other segment reported an annual operating loss of $605 million as compared to an operating loss of $614 million in the prior year. The benefit from the absence of results from disposed businesses, including Myspace, was substantially offset by the inclusion of the costs of the ongoing investigations initiated upon the closure of The News of the World.

Fourth Quarter Segment Results

The Other segment reported a quarterly segment operating loss of $168 million versus a loss of $137 million reported in the same period a year ago. The benefit from the absence of results from disposed businesses, including Myspace, was more than offset by the inclusion of a $57 million charge related to the costs of the ongoing investigations initiated upon the closure of The News of the World.

OTHER ITEMS

Pre-tax non-cash impairment charge

In accordance with Accounting Standards Codification (“ASC”) 350, “Intangibles – Goodwill and Other”, the Company recorded a non-cash impairment charge of approximately $2.8 billion in the fourth quarter. The charge consisted of a write-down of $1.5 billion of goodwill and a $1.3 billion write-down of the Company’s indefinite-lived intangibles, principally related to the Company’s publishing businesses, most significantly the Australian operations.

Share repurchases

On May 9, 2012, News Corporation announced that its Board of Directors approved an increase to the previously authorized stock repurchase program from $5 billion to $10 billion. Through August 7, 2012, the Company has purchased approximately $5.1 billion of Class A common stock under the program, at an average price of $18.18 per share.

Dividends

A dividend of $0.085 per Class A and Class B Common Stock has been declared and is payable on October 17, 2012. The record date for determining dividend entitlements is September 12, 2012.

Intent to pursue separation of entertainment and publishing businesses

On June 28, 2012, News Corporation announced that it intends to pursue the separation of its publishing and its media and entertainment businesses into two distinct publicly traded companies. The global media and entertainment company would consist of the Company’s cable and television assets, filmed entertainment, and direct satellite broadcasting businesses. The global publishing company that would be created through the proposed transaction would consist of the Company’s current publishing businesses, as well as its education division. Following the separation, each company would maintain two classes of common stock: Class A Common and Class B Common Voting Shares. The separation is expected to be completed in approximately one year. In addition to final approval from the Board of Directors and stockholder approval, the completion of the separation will be subject to receipt of regulatory approvals, opinions from tax counsel and favorable rulings from certain tax jurisdictions regarding the tax-free nature of the transaction to the Company and to its stockholders, further due diligence as appropriate, and the filing and effectiveness of appropriate filings with the SEC. There can be no assurances given that the separation of the Company’s businesses as described will occur.

REVIEW OF EQUITY EARNINGS (LOSSES) OF AFFILIATES’ RESULTS

Full Year Results

Full year earnings from affiliates were $730 million compared to $462 million in the prior year. The increased contributions from affiliates are primarily due to improved results from Sky Deutschland and BSkyB, including the Company’s $270 million pre-tax gain related to the Company’s participation in BSkyB’s share repurchase program.

Fourth Quarter Results

Quarterly earnings from affiliates were $263 million as compared to $190 million in the same period a year ago. The increased contributions from affiliates are primarily due to improved results from Sky Deutschland and BSkyB, including the Company’s $115 million pre-tax gain related to the Company’s participation in BSkyB’s share repurchase program.

The Company’s share of equity earnings (losses) of affiliates is as follows:

		3 Months Ended				12 Months Ended
		June 30,				June 30,
	% Owned	2012		2011		2012			2011
		US $ Millions
BSkyB	39%⁽¹⁾	$	249	$	144	$	826		$	498
Other affiliates	Various⁽²⁾		14		46		(96	)		(36	)
Total equity earnings of affiliates		$	263	$	190	$	730		$	462

	⁽¹⁾		Please refer to BSkyB’s earnings releases for detailed information.
	⁽²⁾		Primarily comprised of Sky Deutschland, NDS, Australian and STAR equity affiliates.

Foreign Exchange Rates

Average foreign exchange rates used in the quarter-to-date profit results are as follows:

	3 Months Ended
	June 30,
	2012	2011

Australian Dollar/U.S. Dollar	1.01	1.06
U.K. Pounds Sterling/U.S. Dollar	1.58	1.63
Euro/U.S. Dollar	1.28	1.44

To receive a copy of this press release through the Internet, access News Corporation’s corporate Web site located at http://www.newscorp.com.

Audio from News Corporation’s conference call with analysts on the full year and fourth quarter results can be heard live on the Internet at 4:30 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time today. To listen to the call, visit http://www.newscorp.com.

Cautionary Statement Concerning Forward-Looking Statements

This document contains certain “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements are based on management’s views and assumptions regarding future events and business performance as of the time the statements are made. Actual results may differ materially from these expectations due to changes in global economic, business, competitive market and regulatory factors. More detailed information about these and other factors that could affect future results is contained in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The “forward-looking statements” included in this document are made only as of the date of this document and we do not have any obligation to publicly update any “forward-looking statements” to reflect subsequent events or circumstances, except as required by law.


CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS
	3 Months Ended						12 Months Ended
	June 30,						June 30,
	2012			2011			2012			2011
	US $ Millions (except share related amounts)

Revenues	$	8,370		$	8,962		$	33,706		$	33,405


Operating expenses		(5,233	)		(5,588	)		(20,785	)		(21,058	)
Selling, general and administrative expenses		(1,642	)		(1,668	)		(6,363	)		(6,306	)
Depreciation and amortization		(310	)		(354	)		(1,179	)		(1,191	)
Impairment and restructuring charges		(2,851	)		(28	)		(3,005	)		(313	)
Equity earnings of affiliates		263			190			730			462
Interest expense, net		(261	)		(260	)		(1,034	)		(966	)
Interest income		44			41			135			126
Other, net		(15	)		59			7			18
Income from continuing operations before income tax expense		(1,635	)		1,354			2,212			4,177
Income tax expense		126			(372	)		(805	)		(1,029	)
Income from continuing operations		(1,509	)		982			1,407			3,148
Loss on disposal of discontinued operations, net of tax		-			(254	)		-			(254	)
Net income		(1,509	)		728			1,407			2,894
Less: Net income attributable to noncontrolling interests		(44	)		(45	)		(228	)		(155	)
Net income attributable to News Corporation stockholders	$	(1,553	)	$	683		$	1,179		$	2,739


Weighted average shares:		2,420			2,636			2,504			2,633

Income from continuing operations attributable to News Corporation stockholders per share:	$	(0.64	)	$	0.35		$	0.47		$	1.14

Net income attributable to News Corporation stockholders per share:	$	(0.64	)	$	0.26		$	0.47		$	1.04


CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS	June 30,		June 30,
	2012		2011
Assets:	US $ Millions
Current assets:
Cash and cash equivalents	$	9,626	$	12,680
Receivables, net		6,608		6,330
Inventories, net		2,595		2,332
Other		619		442
Total current assets		19,448		21,784

Non-current assets:
Receivables		387		350
Investments		4,968		4,867
Inventories, net		4,596		4,198
Property, plant and equipment, net		5,814		6,542
Intangible assets, net		7,133		8,587
Goodwill		13,174		14,697
Other non-current assets		1,143		955
Total assets	$	56,663	$	61,980


Liabilities and Equity:
Current liabilities:
Borrowings	$	273	$	32
Accounts payable, accrued expenses and other current liabilities		5,405		5,773
Participations, residuals and royalties payable		1,691		1,511
Program rights payable		1,368		1,298
Deferred revenue		880		957
Total current liabilities		9,617		9,571

Non-current liabilities:
Borrowings		15,182		15,463
Other liabilities		3,650		2,908
Deferred income taxes		2,388		3,149
Redeemable noncontrolling interests		641		242
Commitments and contingencies
Equity:
Class A common stock, $0.01 par value		15		18
Class B common stock, $0.01 par value		8		8
Additional paid-in capital		16,140		17,435
Retained earnings and accumulated other comprehensive income		8,521		12,608
Total News Corporation stockholders’ equity		24,684		30,069
Noncontrolling interests		501		578
Total equity		25,185		30,647
Total liabilities and equity	$	56,663	$	61,980


CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS
	12 Months Ended June 30,
	2012			2011
	US $ Millions
Operating activities:
Net Income	$	1,407		$	2,894
Loss on disposition of discontinued operations, net of tax		-			254
Income from continuing operations		1,407			3,148
Adjustments to reconcile net income to cash provided by operating activities:
Depreciation and amortization		1,179			1,191
Amortization of cable distribution investments		88			92
Equity earnings of affiliates		(730	)		(462	)
Cash distributions received from affiliates		466			310
Impairment charges, net of tax		2,368			168
Other, net		(7	)		(18	)
Change in operating assets and liabilities, net of acquisitions:
Receivables and other assets		(642	)		377
Inventories, net		(399	)		(627	)
Accounts payable and other liabilities		60			292
Net cash provided by operating activities		3,790			4,471

Investing activities:
Property, plant and equipment, net of acquisitions		(939	)		(1,171	)
Acquisitions, net of cash acquired		(542	)		(831	)
Investments in equity affiliates		(4	)		(326	)
Other investments		(411	)		(322	)
Proceeds from dispositions		475			403
Net cash used in investing activities		(1,421	)		(2,247	)

Financing activities:
Borrowings		-			2,471
Repayment of borrowings		(35	)		(557	)
Issuance of shares		167			12
Repurchase of shares		(4,589	)		-
Dividends paid		(593	)		(500	)
Purchase of subsidiary shares from noncontrolling interests		(65	)		(116	)
Sale of subsidiary shares to noncontrolling interests		-			50
Net cash (used in) provided by financing activities		(5,115	)		1,360

Net (decrease) increase in cash and cash equivalents		(2,746	)		3,584
Cash and cash equivalents, beginning of period		12,680			8,709
Exchange movement on opening cash balance		(308	)		387
Cash and cash equivalents, end of period	$	9,626		$	12,680


SEGMENT INFORMATION	3 Months Ended						12 Months Ended
	June 30,						June 30,
	2012			2011			2012			2011
	US $ Millions
Revenues

Cable Network Programming	$	2,476		$	2,151		$	9,132		$	8,037
Filmed Entertainment		1,739			2,033			7,302			6,899
Television		1,083			1,120			4,734			4,778
Direct Broadcast Satellite Television		880			1,038			3,672			3,761
Publishing		2,024			2,350			8,248			8,826
Other		168			270			618			1,104
Total Revenues	$	8,370		$	8,962		$	33,706		$	33,405


Segment Operating Income (Loss)

Cable Network Programming	$	792		$	631		$	3,295		$	2,760
Filmed Entertainment		120			210			1,132			927
Television		213			233			706			681
Direct Broadcast Satellite Television		89			145			254			232
Publishing		139			270			597			864
Other		(168	)		(137	)		(605	)		(614	)
Total Segment Operating Income *	$	1,185		$	1,352		$	5,379		$	4,850

*		The three months ended June 30, 2012 include litigation settlement charges of $57 million. Excluding these charges, adjusted total segment operating income is $1,242 million in the three months ended June 30, 2012.

		The twelve months ended June 30, 2012 and 2011 include litigation settlement charges of $224 million and $125 million, respectively. Excluding these charges, adjusted total segment operating income is $5,603 million and $4,975 million in the twelve months ended June 30, 2012 and 2011, respectively.

NOTE 1 – TOTAL SEGMENT OPERATING INCOME AND SEGMENT OPERATING INCOME BEFORE DEPRECIATION AND AMORTIZATION

The Company evaluates the performance of its operating segments based on segment operating income, and management uses total segment operating income as a measure of the performance of operating businesses separate from non-operating factors. Total segment operating income and segment operating income before depreciation and amortization are non-GAAP measures and should be considered in addition to, not as a substitute for, net income, cash flow and other measures of financial performance reported in accordance with GAAP. In addition, these measures do not reflect cash available to fund requirements. These measures exclude items, such as impairment and restructuring charges, which are significant components in assessing the Company’s financial performance. Segment operating income before depreciation and amortization also excludes depreciation and amortization which are also significant components in assessing the Company’s financial performance.

Management believes that total segment operating income and segment operating income before depreciation and amortization are appropriate measures for evaluating the operating performance of the Company’s business and provide investors and equity analysts a measure to analyze operating performance of the Company’s business and enterprise value against historical data and competitors’ data. Total segment operating income and segment operating income before depreciation and amortization is the primary measure used by our chief operating decision maker to evaluate the performance of and allocate resources to the Company’s business segments.

Total segment operating income does not include: Impairment and restructuring charges, Loss on the disposition of discontinued operations, Equity earnings of affiliates, Interest expense, net, Interest income, Other, net, Income tax expense and Net income attributable to noncontrolling interests.

Segment operating income before depreciation and amortization is defined as segment operating income plus depreciation and amortization and the amortization of cable distribution investments and eliminates the variable effect across all business segments of depreciation and amortization. Depreciation and amortization expense includes the depreciation of property and equipment, as well as amortization of finite-lived intangible assets. Amortization of cable distribution investments represents a reduction against revenues over the term of a carriage arrangement and, as such, it is excluded from segment operating income before depreciation and amortization.

The following table reconciles segment operating income before depreciation and amortization to income from continuing operations before income tax expense.

	3 Months Ended						12 Months Ended
	June 30,						June 30,
	2012			2011			2012			2011
	US $ Millions

Segment Operating income before depreciation and amortization	$	1,514		$	1,729		$	6,646		$	6,133
Depreciation and amortization		(310	)		(354	)		(1,179	)		(1,191	)
Amortization of cable distribution investments		(19	)		(23	)		(88	)		(92	)
Total Segment Operating income		1,185			1,352			5,379			4,850
Impairment and restructuring charges		(2,851	)		(28	)		(3,005	)		(313	)
Equity earnings of affiliates		263			190			730			462
Interest expense, net		(261	)		(260	)		(1,034	)		(966	)
Interest income		44			41			135			126
Other, net		(15	)		59			7			18
Income from continuing operations before income tax expense	$	(1,635	)	$	1,354		$	2,212		$	4,177

	For the Three Months Ended June 30, 2012
	(US $ Millions)
	Segment Operating
	income (loss) before			Depreciation			Amortization of			Segment
	depreciation and			and			cable distribution			Operating income
	amortization			amortization			investments			(loss)
Cable Network Programming	$	859		$	(48	)	$	(19	)	$	792
Filmed Entertainment		154			(34	)		-			120
Television		235			(22	)		-			213
Direct Broadcast Satellite Television		168			(79	)		-			89
Publishing		250			(111	)		-			139
Other		(152	)		(16	)		-			(168	)
Consolidated Total	$	1,514		$	(310	)	$	(19	)	$	1,185

	For the Three Months Ended June 30, 2011
	(US $ Millions)
	Segment Operating
	income (loss) before			Depreciation			Amortization of			Segment
	depreciation and			and			cable distribution			Operating income
	amortization			amortization			investments			(loss)
Cable Network Programming	$	699		$	(45	)	$	(23	)	$	631
Filmed Entertainment		252			(42	)		-			210
Television		258			(25	)		-			233
Direct Broadcast Satellite Television		252			(107	)		-			145
Publishing		374			(104	)		-			270
Other		(106	)		(31	)		-			(137	)
Consolidated Total	$	1,729		$	(354	)	$	(23	)	$	1,352

	For the Twelve Months Ended June 30, 2012
	(US $ Millions)
	Segment Operating
	income (loss) before			Depreciation			Amortization of			Segment
	depreciation and			and			cable distribution			Operating income
	amortization			amortization			investments			(loss)
Cable Network Programming	$	3,548		$	(165	)	$	(88	)	$	3,295
Filmed Entertainment		1,261			(129	)		-			1,132
Television		791			(85	)		-			706
Direct Broadcast Satellite Television		561			(307	)		-			254
Publishing		1,027			(430	)		-			597
Other		(542	)		(63	)		-			(605	)
Consolidated Total	$	6,646		$	(1,179	)	$	(88	)	$	5,379

	For the Twelve Months Ended June 30, 2011
	(US $ Millions)
	Segment Operating
	income (loss) before			Depreciation			Amortization of			Segment
	depreciation and			and			cable distribution			Operating income
	amortization			amortization			investments			(loss)
Cable Network Programming	$	3,008		$	(156	)	$	(92	)	$	2,760
Filmed Entertainment		1,037			(110	)		-			927
Television		770			(89	)		-			681
Direct Broadcast Satellite Television		546			(314	)		-			232
Publishing		1,253			(389	)		-			864
Other		(481	)		(133	)		-			(614	)
Consolidated Total	$	6,133		$	(1,191	)	$	(92	)	$	4,850

NOTE 2 – ADJUSTED NET INCOME AND ADJUSTED EPS

The calculation of net income and earnings per share excluding Segment operating profit adjustments, Impairment and restructuring charges, Equity affiliate adjustments, “Other, net”, and Loss on disposal of discontinued operations, net of tax (“adjusted net income and adjusted diluted earnings per share”) may not be comparable to similarly titled measures reported by other companies, since companies and investors may differ as to what type of events warrant adjustment. Adjusted net income and adjusted diluted earnings per share are not measures of performance under generally accepted accounting principles and should not be construed as substitutes for consolidated net income and earnings per share as determined under GAAP as a measure of performance. However, management uses these measures in comparing the Company’s historical performance and believes that they provide meaningful and comparable information to investors to assist in their analysis of our performance relative to prior periods and our competitors.

The Company uses adjusted net income and adjusted diluted earnings per share to evaluate the performance of the Company’s operations exclusive of certain items that impact the comparability of results from period to period.

The following tables reconcile reported net income and reported diluted earnings per share (“EPS”) to adjusted net income and adjusted diluted earnings per share for the three and twelve months ended June 30, 2012 and 2011.

	3 Months Ended						3 Months Ended
	June 30, 2012						June 30, 2011
	Net (loss)						Net (loss)
	income			EPS			income			EPS
	(in US$ millions, except per share data)

As reported	$	(1,553	)	$	(0.64	)	$	683		$	0.26

Segment operating profit adjustments (net of provision for income taxes of $15 for the three months ended June 30, 2012)^(a)		42			0.02			-			-

Impairment and restructuring charges (net of provision for income taxes of $456 and $10 for the three months ended June 30, 2012 and 2011, respectively)		2,395			0.99			18			0.01

Equity affiliate adjustments (net of provision for income taxes of $40 and $3 for the three months ended June 30, 2012 and 2011, respectively)^(b)		(75	)		(0.03	)		(4	)		-

Other, net (net of provision for income taxes of $41 and $26 for the three months ended June 30, 2012 and 2011, respectively)		(26	)		(0.01	)		(33	)		(0.01	)

Loss on disposal of discontinued operations, net of tax (MySpace)		-			-			254			0.10

Rounding		-			(0.01	)		-			(0.01	)
As adjusted	$	783		$	0.32		$	918		$	0.35

(a)		Segment operating profit for the three months ended June 30, 2012 was adjusted to exclude the expenses related to the ongoing investigations initiated upon the closure of The News of the World.
(b)		Equity earnings of affiliates for the three months ended June 30, 2012 was adjusted to exclude from BSkyB results News Corporation’s gain on the BSkyB repurchase program. Equity earnings of affiliates for the three months ended June 30, 2011 was adjusted to exclude from NDS’ results its gain on the sale of its Open Bet business and the write-off of deferred financing costs from its debt restructuring.

	12 Months Ended						12 Months Ended
	June 30, 2012						June 30, 2011
	Net (loss)						Net (loss)
	income			EPS			income			EPS
	(in US$ millions, except per share data)

As reported	$	1,179		$	0.47		$	2,739		$	1.04

Segment operating profit adjustments (net of provision for income taxes of $54 and $45 for the twelve months ended June 30, 2012 and 2011, respectively)^(a)		170			0.07			80			0.03

Impairment and restructuring charges (net of provision for income taxes of $497 and $51 for the twelve months ended June 30, 2012 and 2011, respectively)		2,508			1.00			262			0.10

Equity affiliate adjustments (net of provision for income taxes of $101 and $46 for the twelve months ended June 30, 2012 and 2011, respectively)^(b)		(187	)		(0.07	)		(87	)		(0.03	)

Other, net (net of provision for income taxes of $142 and $121 for the twelve months ended June 30, 2012 and 2011, respectively)		(149	)		(0.06	)		(139	)		(0.05	)

Loss on disposal of discontinued operations, net of tax (MySpace)		-			-			254			0.10

Rounding		-			-			-			(0.01	)
As adjusted	$	3,521		$	1.41		$	3,109		$	1.18

(a)		Segment operating profit for the twelve months ended June 30, 2012 was adjusted to exclude the expenses related to the ongoing investigations initiated upon the closure of The News of the World. Segment operating profit for the twelve months ended June 30, 2011 was adjusted to exclude the expenses related to the litigation settlement at the integrated marketing services business.
(b)		Equity earnings of affiliates for the twelve months ended June 30, 2012 was adjusted to exclude from BSkyB results News Corporation’s gain on the BSkyB repurchase program and the gain recognized on the fee paid by News Corporation related to its withdrawal of its acquisition bid in July. Equity earnings of affiliates for the twelve months ended June 30, 2011 was adjusted to exclude from NDS’ results its gain on the sale of its Open Bet business and the write-off of deferred financing costs from its debt restructuring, and from BSkyB results the gain recognized on the sale of its Easynet asset.

Sensis taps former COO of The Australian as new CEO

AIMGroup — Wed, 01 Aug 2012 09:00:30 +0000

John Allan will be the next CEO of Australia’s Telstra owned, Sensis. Allan was
previously COO of News Limited’s The Australian newspaper and before that
headed up News’ True Local business, competing with Sensis in the directory
and search business. He replaces Bruce Akhurst, who departed Sensis as the business reshaped its reporting and priority lines.

Allan will have to face issues around the Sensis relationships with both Google
and Yelp as the information provider seeks to redefine itself in the face of
significant print declines and increased competition, particularly from Google.

We’ll tip that search power and the “g0- to-market” models will be among his
first considerations. The Telstra bureaucracy and culture too!

TheHomePage.com.au launches Chinese listings

AIMGroup — Thu, 10 May 2012 17:10:19 +0000

Published May 10, 2012

Real Estate Developers Embrace Chinese–Language Listings On Property PortalThehomepage.com.au

Real estate developers have embraced Chinese language listings on TheHomePage.com.au. More than 50 new property development advertisements have been upgraded to appear in both English and Chinese only one week after the portal launched the new feature. TheHomePage.com.auis the first and only top-five real estate portal* in Australia is to provide listings in Chinese.

The site soft-launched the Chinese–language Web pages for off-the-plan listings in the final week of April. Developers consider this an important new marketing tool for reaching the fastest growing group of buyers in Australia.

Chinese buyers, both local and from Asia, account for about 60% of enquiries and purchases in developments across Australia, according data collected from developers byTheHomePage.com.au. Chinese buyers doubled the number of applications to purchase property in Australia last year, according to the Foreign Investment Review Board.

“The need to market to the Chinese buyer requires an effective and cost efficient channel that can work in cohesion with the other channels to deliver a truly integrated campaign” said Clive Hayes, Business Director of JWT Property, which provides a full-service integrated communication offering to the residential and commercial property sectors. “This initiative by TheHomePage.com.au will be a very useful tactic to the property industry, and I expect it to be quickly embraced.”

TheHomePage.com.au CEO Ben Stockdale said, “When Chinese want to buy off the plan, there is only one major Australian portal where they can see listings in Chinese, and that’s TheHomePage.com.au.”

Many Chinese buyers prefer new property rather than resale property. Australian law limits prohibits foreigners from acquiring established dwellings for investment purposes.

TheHomePage.com.au also places residential listings on Juwai.com, the number 1 international property portal for Chinese buyers, when ranked by number of monthly unique browsers, property listings and editorial resources.

TheHomePage.com.au’s listings are translated into Mandarin by a team of professional linguists.

About TheHomePage.com.au

TheHomePage.com.au enables real estate agents to reach more buyers. Agents and developers who market only on the top two property portals fail to reach the more than 260,000 monthly unique browsers who only visit TheHomePage.com.au — and not the top portals. (Nielsen Market Intelligence)

Notes

* Nielsen NetRatings ranks TheHomePage.com.au fifth in monthly unique browser among residential real estate portals in Australia.

Media Contacts:

Dave Platter

Dave Platter Pty Ltd

Tel. +61 (0)432 814 888

E: dave@daveplatter.com

Online Classifieds Market Maturing, Overall Revenue Growth of 16% in 2011, Finds Frost & Sullivan

AIMGroup — Wed, 18 Apr 2012 21:07:46 +0000

Published April 18, 2012

*Online Classifieds Market Maturing, Overall Revenue Growth of 16% in 2011, Finds Frost & Sullivan*

*Expenditure growth driven mostly by shift from print to online*

SYDNEY, April 16, 2012 /PRNewswire/ — Total revenue growth for the online classifieds market in Australia in 2011 was 16%, dipping 6% over the 22% growth achieved in 2010. The general shift from print to online expenditure is continuing with online accounting for an estimated 39% of total classifieds advertising expenditure in 2011, up from 18% in 2007.

Frost & Sullivan’s latest report, *Australian Online Classifieds Market, due for release in April 2012*, revealed that in 2011 total expenditure on online classifieds was $714 million. Growth in expenditure was driven more by the continued shift from print to online rather than an increase in total classifieds expenditure, which increased only by 3.5% in 2011. As the online classifieds market reaches a higher level of maturity, Frost & Sullivan forecasts that annual growth rates will continue to fall with the overall market expected to hover around $1,000 million in 2015.

In the auto online classifieds sector, a significant reduction in revenue growth was shown from 24% in 2010 to 14%, as the publishers found it more difficult to factor in prices rises for standard online classifieds ad placements in a softer and maturing market. This was a similar scenario for the real estate market which also suffered a decline in revenue growth from 24% to 15%. The online employment classifieds market continued to perform strongly during 2011, with annual growth of 19%, and total expenditure of $244 million, with growth only slightly below that of the previous year.

“The CAGR of the overall online classifieds market between 2011 and 2015 is predicted to be 8.8%, with the auto sector outperforming the other sectors, though only by a marginal amount, “said Phil Harpur, Senior Research Manager, Australia & New Zealand ICT Practice.

“A strong mobile channel offering is becoming increasingly important for online classifieds publishers, as audiences fragment across multiple platforms and a growing proportion of users are accessing the internet via mobile devices. “However of the three major online classifieds segments, real estate offers particularly good potential for mobility, as it is the segment for which mobility is most important to site users” explains Phil.

We are also seeing changes in the competitive environment in all the major sectors. For example LinkedIn has now established itself as a viable alternative to traditional recruitment websites, especially in specialist/niche white collar industries where it is the best and fastest medium to reach a network of skilled and networked professionals,” Phil elaborated.

In real estate classifieds potential for growth through greater market penetration is limited with 95% of estate agencies are estimated to use the online channels to list properties. “Property advertising expenditure growth will continue to slow with growth driven mainly by increased spending on premium advertising rather than basic listings,” he added.

The report also covers the general segment of the online classifieds market, defined as general merchandise categories outside of the three major segments of real estate, employment and automotive. Here, two business models which are impacting and restricting growth in the general online classifieds market are the online auction market and the free classifieds market. “eBay continues to make significant inroads into this market and Gumtree’s level of Internet traffic has grown significantly over the past 2 years,” Phil finishes.

Frost & Sullivan’s *Australian Online Classifieds Market April 2012* report forms part of the Frost & Sullivan Australian Digital Media program. All research services included in this subscription provide detailed market opportunities and industry trends evaluated following extensive interviews with market participants. Interviews with the press are available. If you are interested in more information on this study, please send an e-mail with your contact details to Donna Jeremiah, Corporate Communications, at djeremiah@frost.com.

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