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Murdoch: Tablets, e-readers and smartphones are "lifeless" without content

By | February 2, 2010, 2:20pm PST

Summary: News Corp. CEO Rupert Murdoch said content is what brings life to these new devices

All the buzz these days may be about new tablet PCs, the growing list of e-readers and the constant change coming to smartphones.

On a conference call to discuss second quarter earnings today, News Corp. CEO Rupert Murdoch addressed the growing presence of these devices but called them “empty vessels” without the content - things like newspaper articles, TV shows, Hollywood movies or any of the other forms of digital media that fall under the News Corp. umbrella.

“Content isn’t just King anymore but rather the emperor of all things electronic,” he said. Bigger and flatter screens are nice, but without the content, the devices will be “unloved and unsold.”

As for the quarterly financials, the company did better than it did a year ago. Excluding one-time charges, News Corp. posted earnings of 25 cents per share on sales of $8.7 billion, beating Wall Street’s estimates of 20 cents on sales of $8.23 billion. (Statement)

One of the highlights of the quarter was the release and success of Avatar, which has been nominated for Picture of the Year. Murdoch notes that the success of the will not only resonate for months to come but also highlights a shift in the content, notably 3D.

Executives didn’t have much to say about MySpace, other than to say that the site is “not yet really where we want it to be” but that there are signs of “traffic stablization.”

Murdoch said that the subscription model for the WSJ Online is becoming one of the models that other news outlets are trying to replicate.

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Topics

E-reader, Smart Phone, Rupert Murdoch, News Corp., Tablets, Sales Strategy, Notebooks, Hardware, Notebooks & Tablets, Sales, Sam Diaz

Sam has been a technology and business blogger for more than 18 years.

Disclosure

Sam Diaz

Sam Diaz has nothing to disclose.

Biography

Sam Diaz

Sam has been a technology and business blogger, reporter and editor at ZDNet, the Washington Post, San Jose Mercury News and Fresno Bee for more than 18 years. He's a member of the National Association of Hispanic Journalists and a graduate of California State University, Fresno.

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There are people like you who willingly choose to remain ignorant.
adornoe@... 4th Feb 2010
Wake up and smell the reality.

Are you even on planet earth?

NewsCorp has been the most successful media company in the last few years. They own FOX news channel which is the most viewed cable news network by far, and to boot, the most trusted news source around, topping all others and no one even comes close.

When FOX has way more than double the viewers of all the other cable news networks combined, then NewsCorp and Murdoch must be doing something very right.

NewsCorp also owns the number one newspaper (The Wall Street Journal), and a very large NY City newspaper (NY Post), and many other publications around the world, and many other TV stations around the country and the world, and has huge internet presence with FOXNews web sites. MySpace might no longer be the number one social networking site, but it's still a major player in that arena.

Then there's the major entertainment network, FOX, and FOX studios which as an example, just put out the biggest grossing movie of all time. The network also has the biggest hit on television, "American Idol", and another hit with "24", and many others..

The NewsCorp content is massive and everywhere in all kinds of media.

Believe it or not, FOX news alone was more profitable than all other TV news organizations combined, and that includes ABC, CBS, NBC, MSNBC, CNN, HLN, CNBC. (Mind you now that that's just the news side of all those organizations).

To date, my iPhone use hasn't earned your company one cent because none of the content you sell is of any value to me.

Most people don't use iPhone to consume NewsCorp content. And the iPhone is not the only means for consumption of internet and media content.

You are in a very small minority and the majority of news and information and entertainment consumers are following NewsCorp's content. Heck, I'd venture to say that even you have used or viewed NewsCorp's content, though you may not even realize it or care to admit it.

So buddy, even without your 2 cents, Murdock has been and will continue to be very successful. You are irrelevant to them, but I imagine they're still getting their content in front of you although you might be wanting to tell us something different.
View in thread
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I suppose, but, content is not much good without a way to view it either.
DonnieBoy 2nd Feb 2010
So the businesses are complementary.
0 Votes
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Earth to Murdoch...
Fred Fredrickson 2nd Feb 2010
well, doh.

Your problem is to get us to buy it from you. To date, my iPhone use hasn't earned your company one cent because none of the content you sell is of any value to me.
0 Votes
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Earth to Fred Fredrickson: Wake up and smell the reality
adornoe@... 3rd Feb 2010
Earth to Murdoch, well, doh.

Are you even on planet earth? Or have you been in a deep coma for the last 10 years?

our problem is to get us to buy it from you.

NewsCorp has been the most successful media company in the last few years. They own FOX news channel which is the most viewed cable news network by far, and to boot, the most trusted news source around, topping all others and no one even comes close.

When FOX has way more than double the viewers of all the other cable news networks combined, then NewsCorp and Murdoch must be doing something very right.

NewsCorp also owns the number one newspaper (The Wall Street Journal), and a very large NY City newspaper (NY Post), and many other publications around the world, and many other TV stations around the country and the world, and has huge internet presence with FOXNews web sites. MySpace might no longer be the number one social networking site, but it's still a major player in that arena.

Then there's the major entertainment network, FOX, and FOX studios which as an example, just put out the biggest grossing movie of all time. The network also has the biggest hit on television, "American Idol", and another hit with "24", and many others..

The NewsCorp content is massive and everywhere in all kinds of media.

Believe it or not, FOX news alone was more profitable than all other TV news organizations combined, and that includes ABC, CBS, NBC, MSNBC, CNN, HLN, CNBC. (Mind you now that that's just the news side of all those organizations).

To date, my iPhone use hasn't earned your company one cent because none of the content you sell is of any value to me.

Most people don't use iPhone to consume NewsCorp content. And the iPhone is not the only means for consumption of internet and media content.

You are in a very small minority and the majority of news and information and entertainment consumers are following NewsCorp's content. Heck, I'd venture to say that even you have used or viewed NewsCorp's content, though you may not even realize it or care to admit it.

So buddy, even without your 2 cents, Murdock has been and will continue to be very successful. You are irrelevant to them, but I imagine they're still getting their content in front of you although you might be wanting to tell us something different.
0 Votes
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RE: Murdoch: Tablets, e-readers and smartphones are
namtupdj@... 3rd Feb 2010
What makes Murdoch think his huge conglomerate (or any of the others) will remain "kings" of content? The ultimate content producers (musicians, authors, etc.) are increasingly finding ways to bypass the largely little-or-no-value middlemen like Murdock, who not only "bleed" the true producers along with consumers but increasingly attempt to dictate or censor the content (to their political or pap profit interests).

Consumers, on the other hand, make the ultimate choices with regard to the mode of delivery. Indeed, if the mode of delivery is not to their liking (paper books verses stone tablets, for instance), then even good content may get bypassed / ignored by those consumers.
0 Votes
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I gotta meet this guy. Comes across as old and decrepit, trying to resist c
kaneb80 3rd Feb 2010
change instead of embrace it. I know I will get there someday but for being so rich and in charge of so much media content, you'd think he'd already partnered with Apple or Google, so everyone wins.

What is the ivory tower like?
0 Votes
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Old school is right
geoff@... 3rd Feb 2010
Murdock believes in hard work and long hours...for others to pay his way. He is right that information has value as we are in the information age. it is just a question of how much value and what if anything people are willing to pay. I read another article where Murdock slammed Amazon for a $9.99 digital book price. From where I stand or sit in this case on that number is $9.99 is too much when the cost of the physical book is brought into account vs.digital delivery. I can hand my book once it is read to anyone I choose even a used book store. With digital media I cannot. I doubt there are many digital books I would pay more than a couple of dollars for new. I don't have to be the first one to read the book and paperbacks are just fine. I am not willing to pay for anyone's lavish lifestyle but will pay a bit for my own entertainment.
0 Votes
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Wake up and smell the reality...
adornoe@... 3rd Feb 2010
That "old and decrepit" man has built the most successful media organization in the world. And he's still at it in getting people and other organizations to pay for that content.

If "old and decrepit" means getting to be so successful, then everybody should hope to be as "old and decrepit" as Murdoch..
0 Votes
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RE: Murdoch: Tablets, e-readers and smartphones are
johnmelb 3rd Feb 2010
The amount of rubbish that Murdoch spouts defies all logic but people still bow down to him as if he were God.
Yes, these devices need content, but Murdoch, like Jobs and that guy up at Amazon who's name I forget and have no need to know anyway, ONLY want you to BUY stuff.
I have a ton of stuff on my PC that I never get time to read. I would love something like an Ipad, but something which has a USB port so I can transfer MY STUFF to it, not Murdoch's.
I have no need now, never had in the past and never will in the future for anything published by Murdoch. I even go so far as to never allow a Murdoch newspaper to touch my hands as I have no wish to contaminate my hands with his trash.
0 Votes
+ -
There are people like you who willingly choose to remain ignorant.
adornoe@... 4th Feb 2010
Wake up and smell the reality.

Are you even on planet earth?

NewsCorp has been the most successful media company in the last few years. They own FOX news channel which is the most viewed cable news network by far, and to boot, the most trusted news source around, topping all others and no one even comes close.

When FOX has way more than double the viewers of all the other cable news networks combined, then NewsCorp and Murdoch must be doing something very right.

NewsCorp also owns the number one newspaper (The Wall Street Journal), and a very large NY City newspaper (NY Post), and many other publications around the world, and many other TV stations around the country and the world, and has huge internet presence with FOXNews web sites. MySpace might no longer be the number one social networking site, but it's still a major player in that arena.

Then there's the major entertainment network, FOX, and FOX studios which as an example, just put out the biggest grossing movie of all time. The network also has the biggest hit on television, "American Idol", and another hit with "24", and many others..

The NewsCorp content is massive and everywhere in all kinds of media.

Believe it or not, FOX news alone was more profitable than all other TV news organizations combined, and that includes ABC, CBS, NBC, MSNBC, CNN, HLN, CNBC. (Mind you now that that's just the news side of all those organizations).

To date, my iPhone use hasn't earned your company one cent because none of the content you sell is of any value to me.

Most people don't use iPhone to consume NewsCorp content. And the iPhone is not the only means for consumption of internet and media content.

You are in a very small minority and the majority of news and information and entertainment consumers are following NewsCorp's content. Heck, I'd venture to say that even you have used or viewed NewsCorp's content, though you may not even realize it or care to admit it.

So buddy, even without your 2 cents, Murdock has been and will continue to be very successful. You are irrelevant to them, but I imagine they're still getting their content in front of you although you might be wanting to tell us something different.
0 Votes
+ -
RE: Murdoch: Tablets, e-readers and smartphones are
walkerjian@... 3rd Feb 2010
and as soon as murdoch and all the other media mafia parasites are consigned to the scrapheap the better.
Direct connect from the producer to the customers!

Down with 'shareholders'
Power to the consumer!
Power to the producer/artist/author!

end the tyranny of the tyrant media robber barons!
0 Votes
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Instead or ranting and raving, why not offer some constructive solutions?
adornoe@... 4th Feb 2010
It's not enough to demand direct producer to consumer content. How would you do it? How would anyone do it?

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