News Corp's Murdoch sees more economic shocks
SUN VALLEY, Idaho (Reuters) - Rupert Murdoch sees another year of "bad shocks" for the economy and does not expect a turnaround in 2009, the News Corp NWSa.N chief told Reuters on Thursday.
Murdoch, one of the world's best-known media moguls, has also been among the most pessimistic, repeatedly warning that a slowdown in advertising on local television stations and newspapers will have a severe impact on media businesses.
"There are a lot more bad shocks coming," he said in an interview at the annual Allen & Co Sun Valley gathering of media and technology executives. "More lowering of values, companies selling assets."
Murdoch's latest comments appear to reflect a more severe outlook compared with in March, when he told investors he was "more pessimistic" about the U.S. economy, which is wracked by rising oil and food prices and a global credit crunch.
Since then, News Corp has held discussions to merge or spin-off the MySpace Internet social network, which is one of the world's biggest by users, but has had some difficulty meeting revenue targets. Talks have cooled lately, sources have said.
Murdoch said that Europe, which is already starting to feel the effects of the economic slump, will be hurt further in another six months.
Asked if he saw a turnaround in 2009, Murdoch said: "No." He added that when the economy hit rock bottom, it would persist at such levels for a while.
Shares of News Corp, which owns the 20th Century Fox movie studios and the Times of London newspaper among other media properties, were flat at $14.51 in late trading.
The stock is among one of the worst hit this year, having sunk about 30 percent on economic and media sector concerns.
The shares of MTV Networks owner Viacom Inc (VIAb.N) have fallen 36 percent, while CBS Corp (CBS.N) shares have plunged 35 percent. Walt Disney Co (DIS.N) is among the best-performing of large cap media stocks, but even the creator of Mickey Mouse has seen its shares fall 8 percent this year.
Some investors have also sent News Corp shares lower on worries the ambitious media tycoon, who bought Wall Street Journal publisher Dow Jones & Co for about $5.6 billion last year, is gearing up to buy more assets such as newspapers.
Murdoch, who created a global media empire from a pair of newspapers in Australia, has been one of the world's most aggressive buyers of media companies, a reputation that spooks some investors during an economic downturn.
News Corp recently sought to privatize set-top box technology maker NDS Group Plc NNDS.O that will net it $1.7 billion, sparking concerns it was preparing another purchase.
