What's the future of News Corporation? It's set to get out of newspapers and it will turn itself into an entertainment company.
Jeff Jarvis, associate professor and director of the interactive journalism program and the new business models for news project at the City University of New York's Graduate School of Journalism, sums it up nicely in his latest buzzmachine post.
It will be a case, he says, of saying good bye to the Murdochs and placing the company in the hands of professional managers. Jenkins writes: "That professional management will quickly conclude that the news divisions of News Corp. are a costly drag and will try to divest them, starting with the UK properties and then spreading elsewhere. News Corp. is an entertainment company. Professional management will focus on that and get rid of Rupert's bully pulpits. If they previously did bring clout and regulatory convenience to the Murdoch's business strategies, now all they bring is grief and the attention of lawmakers, prosecutors, competitors, and detractors. News is clearly not a growth business; it is, as a friend in the trade said, profit-challenged. So stop the presses already."
So he sees Fox News being spun off, as will the publishing arm in Australia. Getting rid of the UK newspapers, The Wall Street Journal and his publishing business Harper Collins will be more difficult but it will happen. "So then News Corp. would be an entertainment company and a successful one,'' Jarvis writes.
If he is right, it will mean Murdoch will not have the same power anymore, he will just be just another show biz entity. It's the end of the Empire.
no comment untill now