 Borat proved a big success for Twentieth Century Fox |
The success of Borat and other movie releases has boosted sales at News Corporation, although the firm said it faced challenges in its US TV business. The Devil Wears Prada and the X-Men series also bolstered income from its film division.
But boss Rupert Murdoch said new launch MyNetwork TV had been "disappointing".
Second-quarter revenues rose 18% to $7.8bn but profits fell from the same period last year when it made a one-off gain on selling a UK publishing firm.
Drama headache
Overall, pre-tax profits for the three months to 31 December fell to $822m from $1.075bn a year ago.
However, last year's figure was boosted by a one-off gain from the sale of The Times Educational Supplement (TES). Profits from continuing operations - excluding TES - actually rose.
Operating profits from News Corp's film division rose from $299m to $470m while income from cable news programming and newspapers - including UK titles The Times and The Sun - also rose.
Losses stemming from the launch of the TV drama network last autumn contributed to a sharp fall in operating profits at the TV division.
"Our second fiscal quarter was a success both financially and strategically," Mr Murdoch said.
But he added that the period had not been "without its challenges".
"In particular we were disappointed with the results at MyNetworkTV, whose ratings have been far below expectations. We are focused on reversing this performance."
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Our second fiscal quarter was a success both financially and strategically
