News Corp chairman Rupert Murdoch ‘cautiously optimistic’ on tech giants

News Corp is ‘cautiously optimistic’ that technology giants like Google and Facebook will be made to pay for the news content carried on their platforms.

News Corp chief executive Robert Thomson. Picture: AFP

News Corp executive chairman Rupert Murdoch is “cautiously optimistic” that technology giants such as Google and Facebook will be made to pay for the news content carried on their platforms in the wake of sharpened scrutiny into their operations.

“Our battle against the big tech platforms, for years a solitary struggle, has helped lead to scrutiny of their monopolistic and algorithmic abuses,” Mr Murdoch said during the group’s first virtual annual shareholder meeting.

“With some finally providing some payment to publishers, the fate of a free press hangs in the balance, and I’m cautiously optimistic that we’ll see even more material benefit from this effort in the years ahead.”

Australia’s long-awaited media bargaining code that would force tech giants to pay news publishers for their content will be finalised within four weeks.

Treasurer Josh Frydenberg confirmed to The Australian on Sunday that the code – drafted by the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission following consultations with media companies and digital platforms – will definitely be completed by the end of the parliamentary year on December 10.

Mr Murdoch also rebuffed claims the media company did not take into account climate change. His comments follow former director James Murdoch stepping down from the company’s board in August citing non-specific “disagreements”.

“Our board is open to any discussions, but James...he claimed that our papers had covered the bushfires in Australia without discussing climate change,” the News Corp executive chairman told the meeting.

“We do not deny climate change, we’re not deniers.”

Earlier this year, News Corp Australasia executive chairman Michael Miller refuted claims that the media company did not believe in climate change.

“Contrary to what some critics have argued, News Corp does not deny climate change or the gravity of its threat,” Mr Miller said.

Mr Murdoch said the group was focused on growing its digital offering.

“We’re simplifying and transforming our company, while keeping costs under control and maintaining a strong balance sheet.

“Our goal is to emerge from this era, even stronger and more digital than before with a reduced cost base,” he said.

Mr Murdoch also noted the company was now presenting Dow Jones as a separate segment within the company, providing greater transparency.

“It highlights the legendary business’s growth, profitability and digital development, driven by record-setting subscriptions, and a thriving professional information services business”.

Chief executive Robert Thomson declined to comment on press reports that the company was bidding for publisher Simon & Schuster, but raised competition concerns should German conglomerate Bertelsmann seek to buy the business.

“I am not going to speculate on speculation and scuttlebutt. We are pleased with the performance at HarperCollins and the building of the direct-to-consumer links, the expanding digital personality, and our nonpareil front and backlist authors,” Mr Thomson told shareholders.

“But I would make one observation about Simon & Schuster: It will clearly be a serious antitrust issue if Bertelsmann acquires Simon & Schuster. However cute and clever the structure, if Bertelsmann is their beneficiary, it will be a book behemoth. And this will certainly be a profound antitrust issue for the entire book industry and, no doubt, for authors around the world.”