Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation has reported 'lower-than-expected' $38 million revenue in newspaper advertising in its first financial quarter, since being spun off as a publishing group from the 21st Century Fox.
Revenue for the news and information services segment, which includes the newspapers and represents three-quarters of all revenue, sank $171 million to $1.5 billion, News.com.au reports.
News Corp's overall revenues declined by $60 million to $2.07 billion, the report added.
However, the figures were inflated by $132 million in revenue from the Fox Sports Australia TV station, which it acquired last year.
According to the report, Australians bought fewer hard copy newspapers with increasing number of online readerships.
An official said that the current exponential increases seen in the use of smartphones and tablets to access New Corp's news content online could translate into strong growth in digital advertising.