MUMBAI: The ailment of newspapers in the US continues. After emerging from a four-year old bankruptcy last year, Tribune Co., the company that operates 23 television stations and eight newspapers, has decided to put its newspaper business on the block as it seeks to put more focus on its television business.

The company has mandated investment banks Evercore Partners and J.P. Morgan to find buyers for its newspaper business which includes Los Angeles Times and Chicago Tribune.

Rupert Murdoch?s News Corp. and BH Media Group, a subsidiary of billionaire Warren Buffet?s Berkshire Hathaway, are believed to be possible bidders for the newspaper assets.

"There is a lot of interest in our newspapers, which we haven?t solicited," Tribune said in a statement. "Hiring outside financial advisers will help us determine whether that interest is credible, allow us to consider all of our options, and fulfill our fiduciary responsibility to our shareholders and employees."

The company?s broadcasting group operates 23 television stations, WGN America on national cable and Chicago?s WGN-AM.

MUMBAI: Rupert Murdoch-controlled News Corp?s payout to ESPN for the 50 per cent stake buy in ESPN Star Sports (ESS) is $220 million, net of cash.

In November 2012, News Corp said it acquired the stake of ESPN in ESS for approximately $335 million. So this implies that ESS had a cash balance of $115 million at the time of buying out ESPN?s stake in the company.

ESPN, the American sports television network, said Wednesday in its first quarter financial results that it has gained $219 million from the sale of its 50 per cent interest in ESS, its Asian sports joint venture with rival News Corp.

ESPN last year sold its stake in the JV for $335 million thereby valuing ESS at $770 million. ESS, which is now a wholly-owned subsidiary of News Corp, has been renamed as Fox Star Sports Asia.

Except in India, the ESPN brand name has also been dropped across Asia and all the channels have been renamed Fox Sports in markets where it had a presence.

"EPS for the current quarter includes a gain on the sale of our 50 per cent interest in ESPN STAR Sports of $219 million," The Walt Disney Company said in its October-December first quarter results.

The gain from sale of equity interest in ESS helped ESPN to partially offset lower operating results during the quarter.

MUMBAI: Rupert Murdoch?s News Corporation will become the majority shareholder in Sky Deutschland with a 54.5 per cent stake in the loss making German media company.

News Corporation, which holds 49.9 per cent stake in Sky Deutschland, has reached an agreement with the company and its new bank syndicate to support both a new financing structure and the issuance of ?438 million of new equity.

The new bank financing, which will be guaranteed by News Corporation, will replace Sky Deutschland?s current bank debt facilities.

As a result of this transaction Sky Deutschland will become a consolidated entity of News Corporation, the company said in a statement.

Under the new financing structure, News Corporation has committed to provide a guarantee to Sky Deutschland?s lending banks and to act as guarantor to the German Football League (DFL) for Sky Deutschland?s new Bundesliga broadcasting license for the 2013-17 seasons in an amount of up to 50 percent of the license fee per season.

"We have always believed in Sky Deutschland?s ability to transform the pay TV experience in Germany and Austria and this new financing structure further validates that longstanding commitment," said News Corporation President and COO Chase Carey.

"News Corporation?s continued investment underscores the value we see in Sky Deutschland and the significant market opportunities it faces, and reflects our confidence in its management team and their strategies for growth."

The move comes as the company is in the process of splitting its profitable media and entertainment business from the loss making publishing business. The M&E entertainment company will be known as Fox Group while the publishing entity will retain the name News Corporation.

Earlier, Rupert Murdoch?s News Corp, which owns 39.1 per cent in BSkyB, had made a failed attempt to taking full control of the UK pay-TV operator due to the phone hacking scandal.

MUMBAI: Rupert Murdoch-promoted News Corporation has said in its regulatory filing that its publishing arm on a standalone basis would have lost $2.08 billion in the last fiscal year compared to $678 million a year earlier.

The loss includes an impairment charge of around $2.6 billion due to closure of the News of the World and lower revenues at its Australian papers.

The company?s revenue from publishing business fell to $8.65 billion in fiscal year 2012, from $9.1 billion a year earlier.

News Corp has initiated the process of splitting the company into two independent, publicly-traded companies by filing an initial Form 10 Registration Statement with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Earlier, this month News Corp had decided to name its media and entertainment company as Fox Group with the publishing entity retaining the name News Corporation.

News Corporation, the new publishing arm, will comprise a range of market-leading brands in newspapers, information services and integrated marketing services, digital real estate services, book publishing, digital education, as well as sports programming and pay-TV distribution in Australia.

Fox Group, the film and television businesses, will comprise Fox Broadcasting, Twentieth Century Fox Film, Twentieth
Century Fox Television, Fox Sports, Fox International Channels, Fox News Channel, Fox Business Network, FX, Star Network, the National Geographic Channels, Shine Group, Fox Television Stations, BSkyB, Sky Italia and Sky Deutschland.

"The filing of the Form 10 is another important step forward in the evolution of our company and in the establishment of two independent global leaders in Fox Group and the new News Corporation," said Rupert Murdoch, Chairman and CEO of News Corporation.

"Today we are pleased to provide further details on the new News Corporation - a global diversified media and information services company uniquely positioned to take advantage of exciting growth opportunities and new business models."

MUMBAI: News Corp chairman and CEO Rupert Murdoch has sold his entire Class A non-voting shares to retain his voting stake in the company.

As per regulatory filings, Murdoch sold 418,631 shares on 20 November for more than $10 million at $23.87 to $24.01 per share.

The sale was for estate-planning purposes, reported Bloomberg quoting a source.

The Murdoch family holds 12 per cent but its dual class shareholding structure gives it 40 per cent of the voting power.

It needs to be noted that Murdoch was facing stiff opposition from News Corp shareholders, some of who had proposed sweeping changes to make the management more accountable particularly in the wake of phone hacking scandal in the company?s UK publishing unit.

The investors had also criticised the dual-class structure during the annual general meeting which gives Murdoch family undue power to take their agenda forward.

The company?s Class A shares fell less than 1 percent to $23.82 at the close in New York.

MUMBAI: News Corp is believed to have concluded the deal for acquisition of 49 per cent stake in cable network channel Yes Network, the channel owned by baseball team New York Yankees and its partners.

The deal with Rupert Murdoch?s News Corp would value the sports channel at $3 billion.

While officials from News Corp and Yes Network have refused to comment on the deal, it is believed that the media conglomerate which runs 20 regional sports networks will have an option to increase its stake to 80 per cent in three to five years.

News Corp, which will have a share in the profits, will negotiate on behalf of Yes Network with the operators as part of a larger package of sports channels which would allow Yes to raise the subscriber fee.

As per the shareholding pattern of Yes, Yankee Global Enterprises owns 34 per cent while Goldman Sachs and Providence Equity own 40 per cent. The remainder 26 per cent is owned by former owners of the Nets.

As per the deal, Fox sports channels will not manage the channel nor will provide local or national sports programming to Yes.