News Corp acquired Handpicked Companies Ltd., a luxury-shopping
website in the U.K., continuing the newspaper publisher's push into
new online tools and resources.
Financial terms of the deal weren't disclosed. News Corp owns
The Wall Street Journal and this newswire, among other publications
in the U.S., U.K. and Australia.
Handpicked, which launched its website in 2007, sells home
decor, children's toys and gifts. News Corp said the site will
continue to focus on its existing customer base, but its offerings
will be promoted through two of News Corp's U.K. publications, The
Times and The Sunday Times.
E-commerce has become a revenue option for newspaper publishers
looking for ways to diversify away from advertising and
subscription revenue. Both The Wall Street Journal and the New York
Times offer wine subscription services and other items.
The deal comes a few months after News Corp completed its $25
million acquisition of Storyful, a Dublin-based service that helps
news organizations track breaking-news events and trends by
monitoring social media and verifying the authenticity of
information. The Storyful deal, which closed in December, was News
Corp's first acquisition since it was separated in late June from
TV and film company 21st Century Fox Inc.
News Corp left the larger media conglomerate with $2.6 billion
in cash, though continues to face a years-long decline in
advertising revenue that has challenged the newspaper publishing
industry. In February, the company said its quarterly revenue fell
4%, as a drop in advertising and subscription revenue at the news
and information business offset growth at its other businesses.
Write to Ben Fox Rubin at ben.rubin@wsj.com
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