News Corp profits defy scandals

News Corporation has reported a strong rise in quarterly profits despite continuing legal charges over the phone-hacking scandal.

The company, which owns the Fox television networks, 20th Century Fox film studio, as well as newspapers in Australia, the UK and US, shook off its troubles in Britain after it showed a 2 per cent rise in revenues to $8.4 billion (£5.2bn) in its third-quarter results.

But the company revealed costs of £39.1m for “ongoing investigations” around the closure of the News of the World. News Corp boss Rupert Murdoch said that the firm was “better situated than ever”.

Rival newspaper group Trinity Mirror yesterday admitted it failed to capitalise on the closure of News Corp’s Sunday title as circulation and revenues continue to fall.

The publisher of the Daily Record and Sunday Mail as well as the Daily and Sunday Mirror, and a host of regional titles, said it had been hit by the launch of Murdoch’s Sun on Sunday in February. Its Sunday titles had initially benefited from the closure of its predecessor. Trinity Mirror said revenue for the 17 weeks to 29 April fell 4 per cent as ad spending dropped 11 per cent.