grepcent public filings, reorganized for comparison

NEWS CORP (NWSA) FY 2023 MD&A

Verbatim Item 7 Management's Discussion and Analysis from NEWS CORP's 10-K for fiscal year 2023. Filing date: 2023-08-15. Report date: 2023-06-30. Accession: 0001564708-23-000368.

This page reproduces the company's own Item 7 MD&A text from the linked SEC filing. It is filer text, not grepcent analysis, scoring, or investment advice.

Extracted structurally from real Item 7 body heading to real Item 7A/8 boundary. Confidence: high.

Company profile: NWSA · All MD&A years: index · Previous year: FY 2022 · Next year: FY 2024

ITEM 7.    MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS

This discussion and analysis contains statements that constitute “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”), and Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended. All statements that are not statements of historical fact are forward-looking statements. The words “expect,” “will,” “estimate,” “anticipate,” “predict,” “believe,” “should” and similar expressions and variations thereof are intended to identify forward-looking statements. These statements appear in a number of places in this discussion and analysis and include statements regarding the intent, belief or current expectations of the Company, its directors or its officers with respect to, among other things, trends affecting the Company’s business, financial condition or results of operations, the Company’s strategy and strategic initiatives, including potential acquisitions, investments and dispositions, the Company’s cost savings initiatives, including announced headcount reductions, and the outcome of contingencies such as litigation and investigations. Readers are cautioned that any forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve risks and uncertainties. More information regarding these risks and uncertainties and other important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements is set forth under the heading “Risk Factors” in Item 1A of this Annual Report on Form 10-K (the “Annual Report”). The Company does not ordinarily make projections of its future operating results and undertakes no obligation (and expressly disclaims any obligation) to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law. Readers should carefully review this document and the other documents filed by the Company with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”). This section should be read together with the Consolidated Financial Statements of News Corporation and related notes set forth elsewhere in this Annual Report.

The following discussion and analysis omits discussion of fiscal 2021. Please see “Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2022 for a discussion of fiscal 2021.

INTRODUCTION

News Corporation (together with its subsidiaries, “News Corporation,” “News Corp,” the “Company,” “we,” or “us”) is a global diversified media and information services company comprised of businesses across a range of media, including: digital real estate services, subscription video services in Australia, news and information services and book publishing.

The consolidated financial statements are referred to herein as the “Consolidated Financial Statements.” The consolidated statements of operations are referred to herein as the “Statements of Operations.” The consolidated balance sheets are referred to herein as the “Balance Sheets.” The consolidated statements of cash flows are referred to herein as the “Statements of Cash Flows.” The Consolidated Financial Statements have been prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles in the United States of America (“GAAP”).

Management’s discussion and analysis of financial condition and results of operations is intended to help provide an understanding of the Company’s financial condition, changes in financial condition and results of operations. This discussion is organized as follows:

•Overview of the Company’s Businesses—This section provides a general description of the Company’s businesses, as well as developments that occurred during the two fiscal years ended June 30, 2023 and through the date of this filing that the Company believes are important in understanding its results of operations and financial condition or to disclose known trends.

•Results of Operations—This section provides an analysis of the Company’s results of operations for the two fiscal years ended June 30, 2023. This analysis is presented on both a consolidated basis and a segment basis. Supplemental revenue information is also included for reporting units within certain segments and is presented on a gross basis, before eliminations in consolidation. In addition, a brief description is provided of significant transactions and events that impact the comparability of the results being analyzed. The Company maintains a 52-53 week fiscal year ending on the Sunday closest to June 30 in each year. Fiscal 2023 and 2022 included 52 and 53 weeks, respectively. As a result, the Company has referenced the impact of the 53rd week, where applicable, when providing analysis of the results of operations.

•Liquidity and Capital Resources—This section provides an analysis of the Company’s cash flows for the two fiscal years ended June 30, 2023, as well as a discussion of the Company’s financial arrangements and outstanding commitments, both firm and contingent, that existed as of June 30, 2023.

•Critical Accounting Policies and Estimates—This section discusses accounting policies considered important to the Company’s financial condition and results of operations, and which require significant judgment and estimates on

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the part of management in application. In addition, Note 2 to the Consolidated Financial Statements summarizes the Company’s significant accounting policies, including the critical accounting policies discussed in this section.

OVERVIEW OF THE COMPANY’S BUSINESSES

The Company manages and reports its businesses in the following six segments:

•Digital Real Estate Services—The Digital Real Estate Services segment consists of the Company’s 61.4% interest in REA Group and 80% interest in Move. The remaining 20% interest in Move is held by REA Group. REA Group is a market-leading digital media business specializing in property and is listed on the Australian Securities Exchange (“ASX”) (ASX: REA). REA Group advertises property and property-related services on its websites and mobile apps, including Australia’s leading residential, commercial and share property websites, realestate.com.au, realcommercial.com.au and Flatmates.com.au, property.com.au and property portals in India. In addition, REA Group provides property-related data to the financial sector and financial services through a digital property search and financing experience and a mortgage broking offering.

Move is a leading provider of digital real estate services in the U.S. and primarily operates Realtor.com®, a premier real estate information, advertising and services platform. Move offers real estate advertising solutions to agents and brokers, including its ConnectionsSM Plus, Market VIPSM and AdvantageSM Pro products as well as its referral-based services, ReadyConnect ConciergeSM and UpNest. Move also offers online tools and services to do-it-yourself landlords and tenants.

•Subscription Video Services—The Company’s Subscription Video Services segment provides sports, entertainment and news services to pay-TV and streaming subscribers and other commercial licensees, primarily via satellite and internet distribution, and consists of (i) the Company’s 65% interest in the Foxtel Group (with the remaining 35% interest held by Telstra, an ASX-listed telecommunications company) and (ii) Australian News Channel (“ANC”). The Foxtel Group is the largest Australian-based subscription television provider. Its Foxtel pay-TV service provides approximately 200 live channels and video on demand covering sports, general entertainment, movies, documentaries, music, children’s programming and news. Foxtel and the Group’s Kayo Sports streaming service offer the leading sports programming content in Australia, with broadcast rights to live sporting events including: National Rugby League, Australian Football League, Cricket Australia and various motorsports programming. The Foxtel Group’s other streaming services include BINGE, its entertainment streaming service, and Foxtel Now, a streaming service that provides access across Foxtel’s live and on-demand content.

ANC operates the SKY NEWS network, Australia’s 24-hour multi-channel, multi-platform news service. ANC channels are distributed throughout Australia and New Zealand and available on Foxtel and Sky Network Television NZ. ANC also owns and operates the international Australia Channel IPTV service and offers content across a variety of digital media platforms, including web, mobile and third party providers.

•Dow Jones—The Dow Jones segment consists of Dow Jones, a global provider of news and business information whose products target individual consumers and enterprise customers and are distributed through a variety of media channels including newspapers, newswires, websites, mobile apps, newsletters, magazines, proprietary databases, live journalism, video and podcasts. Dow Jones’s consumer products include premier brands such as The Wall Street Journal, Barron’s, MarketWatch and Investor’s Business Daily. Dow Jones’s professional information products, which target enterprise customers, include Dow Jones Risk & Compliance, a leading provider of data solutions to help customers identify and manage regulatory, corporate and reputational risk with tools focused on financial crime, sanctions, trade and other compliance requirements, OPIS, a leading provider of pricing data, news, insights, analysis and other information for energy commodities and key base chemicals, Factiva, a leading provider of global business content, and Dow Jones Newswires, which distributes real-time business news, information and analysis to financial professionals and investors.

•Book Publishing—The Book Publishing segment consists of HarperCollins, the second largest consumer book publisher in the world, with operations in 17 countries and particular strengths in general fiction, nonfiction, children’s and religious publishing. HarperCollins owns more than 120 branded publishing imprints, including Harper, William Morrow, Mariner, HarperCollins Children’s Books, Avon, Harlequin and Christian publishers Zondervan and Thomas Nelson, and publishes works by well-known authors such as Harper Lee, George Orwell, Agatha Christie and Zora Neale Hurston, as well as global author brands including J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Daniel Silva, Karin Slaughter and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. It is also home to many beloved children’s books and authors and a significant Christian publishing business.

•News Media—The News Media segment consists primarily of News Corp Australia, News UK and the New York Post and includes The Australian, The Daily Telegraph, Herald Sun, The Courier Mail, The Advertiser and the

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news.com.au website in Australia, The Times, The Sunday Times, The Sun, The Sun on Sunday and thesun.co.uk in the U.K. and the-sun.com in the U.S. This segment also includes Wireless Group, operator of talkSPORT, the leading sports radio network in the U.K., TalkTV in the U.K. and Storyful, a social media content agency.

•Other—The Other segment consists primarily of general corporate overhead expenses, strategy costs and costs related to the U.K. Newspaper Matters (as defined in Note 16—Commitments and Contingencies to the Consolidated Financial Statements).

Digital Real Estate Services

The Digital Real Estate Services segment generates revenue through property and property-related advertising and services, including: the sale of real estate listing and lead generation products and referral-based services to agents, brokers, developers, homebuilders and landlords; real estate-related and property rental-related services; display advertising on residential real estate and commercial property sites; and residential property data services to the financial sector. The Digital Real Estate Services segment also generates revenue through commissions from referrals generated through its digital property search and financing offering and mortgage broking services. Significant expenses associated with these sites and services include development costs, advertising and promotional expenses, hosting and support services, salaries, broker commissions, employee benefits and other routine overhead expenses. The Digital Real Estate Services segment’s results are highly sensitive to conditions in the real estate market, as well as macroeconomic factors such as interest rates and inflation, which are expected to continue to adversely impact real estate lead and transaction volumes and adjacent businesses in the near term.

Consumers overwhelmingly turn to the internet and mobile devices for real estate information and services. The Digital Real Estate Services segment’s success depends on its continued innovation to provide products and services that are useful for consumers and real estate, mortgage and financial services professionals, homebuilders and landlords and attractive to its advertisers. The Digital Real Estate Services segment operates in a highly competitive digital environment with other operators of real estate and property websites and mobile apps.

Subscription Video Services

The Company’s Subscription Video Services segment consists of (i) its 65% interest in the Foxtel Group and (ii) ANC. The Foxtel Group is the largest Australian-based subscription television provider, with a suite of offerings including its Foxtel pay-TV and Kayo Sports, BINGE and Foxtel Now streaming services. The Foxtel Group generates revenue primarily through subscription revenue as well as advertising revenue.

The Foxtel Group competes for audiences primarily with a variety of other video content providers, such as traditional Free-To-Air (“FTA”) TV operators in Australia, including the three major commercial FTA networks and two major government-funded FTA broadcasters, and content providers that deliver video programming over the internet. These providers include, Internet Protocol television, or IPTV, subscription video-on-demand and broadcast video-on-demand providers; streaming services offered through digital media providers; as well as programmers and distributors that provide content directly to consumers over the internet.

ANC operates the SKY NEWS network, Australia’s 24-hour multi-channel, multi-platform news service, and also owns and operates the Australia Channel IPTV service for international markets. Revenue is primarily derived from monthly affiliate fees received from pay-TV providers and advertising.

The most significant operating expenses of the Subscription Video Services segment are the acquisition and production expenses related to programming, the expenses related to operating the technical facilities of the broadcast operations, expenses related to satellite, data and cable-related transmission costs and studio and engineering expense. The expenses associated with licensing certain sports programming rights are recognized during the applicable season or event, which can cause results at the Subscription Video Services segment to fluctuate based on the timing and mix of the Foxtel Group’s local and international sports programming. Sports programming rights costs associated with a dedicated channel are amortized over 12 months. Other expenses include subscriber acquisition costs such as sales costs and marketing and promotional expenses related to improving the market visibility and awareness of the channels and their programming. Additional expenses include salaries, employee benefits, technology, rent and other routine overhead expenses.

Dow Jones

The Dow Jones segment’s products target individual consumers and enterprise customers. Revenue from the Dow Jones segment’s consumer business is derived primarily from circulation, which includes subscription and single-copy sales of its digital and print consumer products, the sale of digital and print advertising, licensing fees for its print and digital consumer content and

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participation fees for its live journalism events. Circulation revenues are dependent on the content of the Dow Jones segment’s consumer products, prices of its and/or competitors’ products, as well as promotional activities and news cycles. Advertising revenue is dependent on a number of factors, including demand for the Dow Jones segment’s consumer products, general economic and business conditions, demographics of the customer base, advertising rates and effectiveness and brand strength and reputation. Certain sectors of the economy account for a significant portion of Dow Jones’s advertising revenues, including technology and finance, which were particularly affected by economic and market conditions in fiscal 2023. Advertising revenues are also subject to seasonality, with revenues typically highest in the Company's second fiscal quarter due to the end-of-year holiday season. In addition, the consumer print business faces challenges from alternative media formats and shifting consumer preferences, which have adversely affected, and are expected to continue to adversely affect, both print circulation and advertising revenues. Advertising, in particular, has been impacted by the shift in advertising spending from print to digital. The increasing range of advertising choices and formats has resulted in audience fragmentation and increased competition. Technologies, regulations, policies and practices have also been and will continue to be developed and implemented that make it more difficult to target and measure the effectiveness of digital advertising, which may impact digital advertising rates or revenues. As a multi-platform news provider, the Dow Jones segment seeks to maximize revenues from a variety of media formats and platforms, including leveraging its content through licensing arrangements with third-party distribution platforms, developing new advertising models and growing its live journalism events business, and continues to invest in its digital and other products, which represent an increasingly larger share of revenues at its consumer business. Mobile devices, their related apps and other technologies, provide continued opportunities for the Dow Jones segment to make its content available to a new audience of readers, introduce new or different pricing schemes and develop its products to continue to attract advertisers and/or affect the relationship between content providers and consumers.

Operating expenses for the consumer business include costs related to paper, production, distribution, third party printing, editorial and commissions. Selling, general and administrative expenses include promotional expenses, salaries, employee benefits, rent and other routine overhead. The costs associated with printing and distributing newspapers, including paper prices and delivery costs, are key operating expenses whose fluctuations can have a material effect on the results of the Dow Jones segment’s consumer business. The consumer business is affected by the cyclical changes in the price of paper and other factors that may affect paper prices, including, among other things, inflation, supply chain disruptions, industry trends or economics and tariffs or other restrictions on non-U.S. paper suppliers. In addition, the Dow Jones segment relies on third parties for much of the printing and distribution of its print products. The shift from print to digital and changing labor markets present challenges to the financial and operational stability of these third parties which could, in turn, impact the availability, or increase the cost, of third-party printing and distribution services for the Company's newspapers.

The Dow Jones segment’s consumer products compete for consumers, audience and advertising with other local and national newspapers, web and app-based media, news aggregators, customized news feeds, search engines, blogs, magazines, investment tools, social media sources, podcasts and event producers, as well as other media such as television, radio stations and outdoor displays. As a result of rapidly changing and evolving technologies (including recent developments in artificial intelligence (AI), particularly generative AI), distribution platforms and business models, and corresponding changes in consumer behavior, the consumer business continues to face increasing competition for both circulation and advertising revenue, including from a variety of alternative news and information sources, as well as programmatic advertising buying channels and off-platform distribution of its products.

The Dow Jones segment’s professional information business, which targets enterprise customers, derives revenue primarily from subscriptions to its professional information products. The professional information business serves enterprise customers with products that combine news and information with technology and tools that inform decisions and aid awareness, research, understanding and compliance. The success of the professional information business depends on its ability to provide products, services, applications and functionalities that meet the needs of its enterprise customers, who operate in information-intensive and oftentimes highly regulated industries such as finance and insurance. The professional information business must also anticipate and respond to industry trends and regulatory and technological changes.

Significant expenses for the professional information business include development costs, sales and marketing expenses, hosting and support services, royalties, salaries, consulting and professional fees, sales commissions, employee benefits and other routine overhead expenses.

The Dow Jones segment’s professional information products compete with various information service providers, compliance data providers, global financial newswires and energy and commodities pricing and data providers, including Reuters News, RELX (including LexisNexis and ICIS), Refinitiv, S&P Global, DTN and Argus Media, as well as many other providers of news, information and compliance data.

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Book Publishing

The Book Publishing segment derives revenues from the sale of general fiction, nonfiction, children’s and religious books in the U.S. and internationally. The revenues and operating results of the Book Publishing segment are significantly affected by the timing of releases and the number of its books in the marketplace. The book publishing marketplace is subject to increased periods of demand during the end-of-year holiday season in its main operating geographies. This marketplace is highly competitive and continues to change due to technological developments, including additional digital platforms, such as e-books and downloadable audiobooks, and distribution channels and other factors. Each book is a separate and distinct product and its financial success depends upon many factors, including public acceptance.

Major new title releases represent a significant portion of the Book Publishing segment’s sales throughout the fiscal year. Print-based consumer books are generally sold on a fully returnable basis, resulting in the return of unsold books. In the domestic and international markets, the Book Publishing segment is subject to global trends and local economic conditions, including supply chain challenges and inflationary and inventory pressures during fiscal 2023, which are expected to moderate in fiscal 2024. Operating expenses for the Book Publishing segment include costs related to paper, printing, freight, authors’ royalties, editorial, promotional, art and design expenses. Selling, general and administrative expenses include salaries, employee benefits, rent and other routine overhead costs.

News Media

Revenue at the News Media segment is derived primarily from circulation and subscriptions, the sale of advertising, as well as licensing. Circulation and subscription revenues can be greatly affected by changes in the prices of the Company’s and/or competitors’ products, as well as by promotional activities and news cycles. Adverse changes in general market conditions for advertising have affected, and may continue to affect, revenues. Advertising revenues at the News Media segment are also subject to seasonality, with revenues typically being highest in the Company’s second fiscal quarter due to the end-of-year holiday season in its main operating geographies.

Operating expenses include costs related to paper, production, distribution, third party printing, editorial, commissions, technology and radio sports rights. Selling, general and administrative expenses include promotional expenses, salaries, employee benefits, rent and other routine overhead. The cost of paper is a key operating expense whose fluctuations can have a material effect on the results of the segment. The News Media segment continues to be exposed to risks associated with paper used for printing. Paper is a basic commodity and its price is sensitive to the balance of supply and demand. The News Media segment’s expenses are affected by the cyclical changes in the price of paper and other factors that may affect paper prices, including, among other things, inflation, supply chain disruptions, industry trends or economics (including the closure or conversion of newsprint mills) and tariffs. The News Media segment experienced significant paper price increases in fiscal 2023. While the Company anticipates these increases will moderate, it expects prices to remain elevated.

The News Media segment’s products compete for readership, audience and advertising with local and national competitors and also compete with other media alternatives in their respective markets. Competition for circulation and subscriptions is based on the content of the products provided, pricing and, from time to time, various promotions. The success of these products also depends upon advertisers’ judgments as to the most effective use of their advertising budgets. Competition for advertising is based upon the reach of the products, advertising rates and advertiser results. Such judgments are based on factors such as cost, availability of alternative media, distribution and quality of consumer demographics. As a result of rapidly changing and evolving technologies (including recent developments in AI, particularly generative AI), distribution platforms and business models, and corresponding changes in consumer behavior, the News Media segment continues to face increasing competition for both circulation and advertising revenue.

The News Media segment’s print business faces challenges from alternative media formats and shifting consumer preferences. The News Media segment is also exposed to the impact of the shift in advertising spending from print to digital. These alternative media formats could impact the segment’s overall performance, positively or negatively. In addition, technologies, regulations, policies and practices have been and will continue to be developed and implemented that make it more difficult to target and measure the effectiveness of digital advertising, which may impact digital advertising rates or revenues.

As multi-platform news providers, the businesses within the News Media segment seek to maximize revenues from a variety of media formats and platforms, including leveraging their content through licensing arrangements with third-party distribution platforms and developing new advertising models, and continue to invest in their digital products. Mobile devices, their related apps and other technologies, provide continued opportunities for the businesses within the News Media segment to make their content available to a new audience of readers, introduce new or different pricing schemes and develop their products to continue to attract advertisers and/or affect the relationship between content providers and consumers.

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Other

The Other segment primarily consists of general corporate overhead expenses, strategy costs and costs related to the U.K. Newspaper Matters.

Other Business Developments

Fiscal 2023

Exploration of Potential Combination with FOX Corporation (“FOX”)

In October 2022, the Company announced that its Board of Directors (the “Board of Directors”), following the receipt of letters from K. Rupert Murdoch and the Murdoch Family Trust, had formed a special committee of independent and disinterested members of the Board of Directors (the “Special Committee”) to begin exploring a potential combination with FOX (the “Potential Transaction”). In January 2023, the Board of Directors received a letter from Mr. Murdoch withdrawing the proposal to explore the Potential Transaction. As a result of the letter, the Special Committee has been dissolved.

Potential Disposition of Move

In January 2023, the Company announced that it was engaged in discussions with CoStar Group, Inc. (“CoStar”) regarding a potential sale of its subsidiary, Move. In February 2023, the Company confirmed that it is no longer engaged in these discussions with CoStar.

Russian and Ukrainian conflict

The Company takes extensive steps to ensure the safety of its journalists and other personnel in Ukraine and Russia. Despite these measures, a reporter for The Wall Street Journal was detained by Russian authorities in March 2023 while on assignment in the country. The Company has engaged legal counsel for the reporter and is working to secure his release. The Company will continue to closely monitor the situation in the region. While the Company has extremely limited business operations in, or direct exposure to, Russia or Ukraine and the conflict has not had a material impact on its business, financial condition, or results of operations to date, the Company prioritizes the health, safety, security and well-being of its employees and will continue to support affected employees in the region. In addition to impacts on its personnel, the conflict has broadened inflationary pressures and a further escalation or expansion of its scope or the related economic disruption could impact the Company's supply chain, further exacerbate inflation and other macroeconomic trends and have an adverse effect on its results of operations.

Announced Headcount Reduction

In response to the macroeconomic challenges facing many of the Company’s businesses, the Company continues to implement cost savings initiatives, including an expected 5% headcount reduction, or around 1,250 positions, this calendar year. Decisions regarding the elimination of positions are ongoing and assessed based on the needs of the respective businesses. The Company notified the majority of affected employees and recognized the associated cash restructuring charges of approximately $80 million in the second half of fiscal 2023. While it is still evaluating the estimated cost savings from these actions, the Company currently expects this to generate annualized gross cost savings of at least $160 million once completed, the majority of which will be reflected in fiscal 2024. See Note 5—Restructuring Programs in the accompanying Consolidated Financial Statements.

Fiscal 2022

REA Group sale of Malaysia and Thailand businesses

In August 2021, REA Group acquired an 18% interest (16.6% on a diluted basis) in PropertyGuru Pte. Ltd., now PropertyGuru Group Ltd. (“PropertyGuru”), a leading digital property technology company operating marketplaces in Southeast Asia, in exchange for all shares of REA Group’s entities in Malaysia and Thailand. The transaction was completed after REA Group entered into an agreement to sell its 27% interest in its existing venture with 99.co. The transaction creates a leading digital real estate services company in Southeast Asia, new opportunities for collaboration and access to a deeper pool of expertise, technology and investment in the region. REA Group received one seat on the board of directors of PropertyGuru as part of the transaction.

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In March 2022, PropertyGuru completed its merger with Bridgetown 2 Holdings Limited. As a result of the merger and subsequent investments made in connection with the transaction, REA Group’s ownership interest in PropertyGuru was 17.5% and a gain of approximately $15 million was recorded in Other, net.

Share Repurchase Program

In September 2021, the Company announced a stock repurchase program authorizing the Company to purchase up to $1 billion in the aggregate of its outstanding Class A Common Stock and Class B Common Stock (the “Repurchase Program”). The manner, timing, number and share price of any repurchases will be determined by the Company at its discretion and will depend upon such factors as the market price of the stock, general market conditions, applicable securities laws, alternative investment opportunities and other factors. The Repurchase Program has no time limit and may be modified, suspended or discontinued at any time. See Note 12—Stockholders' Equity in the accompanying Consolidated Financial Statements.

2022 Senior Notes Offering

In February 2022, the Company issued $500 million of senior notes due 2032 (the “2022 Senior Notes”). The 2022 Senior Notes bear interest at a fixed rate of 5.125% per annum, payable in cash semi-annually on February 15 and August 15 of each year, commencing on August 15, 2022. The notes will mature on February 15, 2032. The Company used the net proceeds from the offering for general corporate purposes, including to fund the acquisitions of OPIS and CMA. See Note 9—Borrowings in the accompanying Consolidated Financial Statements.

Acquisition of OPIS

In February 2022, the Company acquired the Oil Price Information Service business and related assets (“OPIS”) from S&P Global Inc. (“S&P”) and IHS Markit Ltd. for $1.15 billion in cash, subject to customary purchase price adjustments. OPIS is a global industry standard for benchmark and reference pricing and news and analytics for the oil, natural gas liquids and biofuels industries. The business also provides pricing and news and analytics for the coal, mining and metals end markets and insights and analytics in renewables and carbon pricing. The acquisition enables Dow Jones to become a leading provider of energy and renewables information and furthers its goal of building the leading global business news and information platform for professionals. OPIS is a subsidiary of Dow Jones, and its results are included in the Dow Jones segment.

Term Loan A and Revolving Credit Facilities

On March 29, 2022, the Company terminated its existing unsecured $750 million revolving credit facility and entered into a new credit agreement (the “2022 Credit Agreement”) that provides for $1,250 million of unsecured credit facilities comprised of a $500 million unsecured term loan A credit facility (the “Term A Facility” and the loans under the Term A Facility are collectively referred to as “Term A Loans”) and a $750 million unsecured revolving credit facility (the “Revolving Facility” and, together with the Term A Facility, the “Facilities”) that can be used for general corporate purposes. See Note 9—Borrowings in the accompanying Consolidated Financial Statements.

The Company entered into an interest rate swap derivative to fix the floating rate interest component of its Term A Loans at 2.083%. See Note 11—Financial Instruments and Fair Value Measurements in the accompanying Consolidated Financial Statements.

The Company borrowed the full amount of the Term A Facility on March 31, 2022 and had not borrowed any funds under the Revolving Facility as of June 30, 2023.

Acquisition of Base Chemicals

In June 2022, the Company acquired the Base Chemicals (rebranded Chemical Market Analytics, “CMA”) business from S&P for $295 million in cash, subject to customary purchase price adjustments. CMA provides pricing data, insights, analysis and forecasting for key base chemicals through its leading Market Advisory and World Analysis services. The acquisition enables Dow Jones to become a leading provider of base chemicals information and furthers its goal of building the leading global

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business news and information platform for professionals. CMA is operated by Dow Jones, and its results are included in the Dow Jones segment.

Acquisition of UpNest

In June 2022, the Company acquired UpNest, Inc. (“UpNest”) for closing cash consideration of approximately $45 million, subject to customary purchase price adjustments, and up to $15 million in future cash consideration based upon the achievement of certain performance objectives over the next two years. UpNest is a real estate agent marketplace that matches home sellers and buyers with top local agents who compete for their business. The UpNest acquisition helps Realtor.com® further expand its services and support for home sellers and listing agents and brokers. UpNest is a subsidiary of Move, and its results are included within the Digital Real Estate Services segment.

See Note 4—Acquisitions, Disposals and Other Transactions in the accompanying Consolidated Financial Statements for further discussion of the acquisitions and dispositions discussed above.

Results of Operations—Fiscal 2023 versus Fiscal 2022

The following table sets forth the Company’s operating results for fiscal 2023 as compared to fiscal 2022.

For the fiscal years ended June 30,
20232022Change% Change
(in millions, except %)Better/(Worse)
Revenues:
Circulation and subscription$4,447$4,425$22%
Advertising1,6871,821(134)(7)%
Consumer1,8992,106(207)(10)%
Real estate1,1891,347(158)(12)%
Other657686(29)(4)%
Total Revenues9,87910,385(506)(5)%
Operating expenses(5,124)(5,124)%
Selling, general and administrative(3,335)(3,592)2577%
Depreciation and amortization(714)(688)(26)(4)%
Impairment and restructuring charges(150)(109)(41)(38)%
Equity losses of affiliates(127)(13)(114)**
Interest expense, net(100)(99)(1)(1)%
Other, net152(51)(98)%
Income before income tax expense330812(482)(59)%
Income tax expense(143)(52)(91)**
Net income187760(573)(75)%
Less: Net income attributable to noncontrolling interests(38)(137)9972%
Net income attributable to News Corporation stockholders$149$623$(474)(76)%

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**    not meaningful

Revenues—Revenues decreased $506 million, or 5%, for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2023 as compared to fiscal 2022. The decrease, which includes the approximately $110 million impact of the absence of the 53rd week in fiscal 2023, was driven in part by lower revenues at the Book Publishing segment primarily due to lower print and digital book sales, mainly in the U.S. market, driven by lower consumer demand industry-wide, weak frontlist performance, Amazon’s reset of its inventory levels and rightsizing of its warehouse footprint and the negative impact of foreign currency fluctuations. The decrease was also driven by lower revenues at the Digital Real Estate Services segment primarily due to lower real estate revenues at Move, the negative impact of foreign currency fluctuations and lower financial services revenue at REA Group and at the News Media and Subscription Video Services segments due to the negative impact of foreign currency fluctuations. These decreases were partially offset by higher revenues at the Dow Jones segment primarily due to the acquisitions of OPIS and CMA. Digital revenues accounted for approximately 50% of total revenues for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2023.

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The impact of foreign currency fluctuations of the U.S. dollar against local currencies resulted in a revenue decrease of $494 million, or 5%, for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2023 as compared to fiscal 2022. The Company calculates the impact of foreign currency fluctuations for businesses reporting in currencies other than the U.S. dollar by multiplying the results for each quarter in the current period by the difference between the average exchange rate for that quarter and the average exchange rate in effect during the corresponding quarter of the prior year and totaling the impact for all quarters in the current period.

Operating expenses—Operating expenses were flat for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2023 as compared to fiscal 2022. Operating expenses at the Dow Jones segment increased due to the impact from recent acquisitions. The increase was offset by lower operating expenses at the Book Publishing segment driven by the positive impact of foreign currency fluctuations, as the impact of lower sales volumes offset higher manufacturing, freight and distribution costs, and at the News Media segment due to the positive impact of foreign currency fluctuations, as the $60 million impact of higher pricing on newsprint costs and higher costs for TalkTV and other digital investments, primarily at News Corp Australia, were partially offset by cost savings initiatives. Operating expenses at the Subscription Video Services segment were also lower due to the positive impact of foreign currency fluctuations, largely offset by higher sports and entertainment programming costs. The impact of foreign currency fluctuations of the U.S. dollar against local currencies resulted in an Operating expense decrease of $242 million, or 5%, for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2023 as compared to fiscal 2022.

Selling, general and administrative—Selling, general and administrative decreased $257 million, or 7%, for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2023 as compared to fiscal 2022. The decrease in Selling, general and administrative for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2023 was primarily driven by lower expenses at the Digital Real Estate Services segment mainly due to the positive impact of foreign currency fluctuations, lower broker commissions at REA Group’s financial services business and lower discretionary spending and employee costs at Move and at the News Media segment due to the positive impact of foreign currency fluctuations and cost savings initiatives, partially offset by higher employee and marketing costs. Selling, general and administrative also decreased at the Subscription Video Services segment primarily due to the positive impact of foreign currency fluctuations and lower marketing costs and at the Book Publishing segment primarily due to lower employee costs and the positive impact of foreign currency fluctuations. Selling, general and administrative declined at the Other segment primarily due to the absence of one-time legal settlement costs, partially offset by $10 million of one-time costs related to the professional fees incurred by the Special Committee and the Company in connection with evaluating the proposal from the Murdoch Family Trust, as well as fees related to the potential sale of Move. Selling, general and administrative at the Dow Jones segment benefited from the absence of $25 million of OPIS and CMA-related transaction costs incurred in fiscal 2022 and the positive impact of foreign currency fluctuations, offset by higher employee costs due to recent acquisitions. The impact of foreign currency fluctuations of the U.S. dollar against local currencies resulted in a Selling, general and administrative decrease of $172 million, or 5%, for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2023 as compared to fiscal 2022.

Depreciation and amortization—Depreciation and amortization expense increased $26 million, or 4%, for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2023 as compared to fiscal 2022, primarily driven by higher amortization expense resulting from the Company’s recent acquisitions. The impact of foreign currency fluctuations of the U.S. dollar against local currencies resulted in a depreciation and amortization expense decrease of $35 million, or 5%, for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2023 as compared to fiscal 2022.

Impairment and restructuring charges—During the fiscal years ended June 30, 2023 and 2022, the Company recorded restructuring charges of $125 million and $94 million, respectively.

During the fiscal year ended June 30, 2023, the Company recognized non-cash impairment charges of $25 million related to the impairment of certain indefinite-lived intangible assets during the Company’s annual impairment assessment.

During the fiscal year ended June 30, 2022, the Company recognized non-cash impairment charges of $15 million related to the write-down of fixed assets associated with the shutdown and sale of certain U.S. printing facilities at the Dow Jones segment.

See Note 5—Restructuring Programs, Note 7—Property, Plant and Equipment and Note 8—Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets in the accompanying Consolidated Financial Statements.

Equity losses of affiliates—Equity losses of affiliates increased by $114 million for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2023 as compared to fiscal 2022, primarily due to a non-cash write-down of REA Group’s investment in PropertyGuru of approximately $81 million and losses from an investment in an Australian sports wagering venture. See Note 6—Investments in the accompanying Consolidated Financial Statements.

Interest expense, net—Interest expense, net for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2023 increased $1 million, or 1%, as compared to fiscal 2022. See Note 9—Borrowings in the accompanying Consolidated Financial Statements.

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Other, net—Other, net decreased $51 million, or 98%, for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2023 as compared to fiscal 2022. The decrease was primarily due to the absence of REA Group’s gain on disposition of its entities in Malaysia and Thailand recognized in fiscal 2022. See Note 21—Additional Financial Information in the accompanying Consolidated Financial Statements.

Income tax expense—The Company’s income tax expense and effective tax rate for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2023 were $143 million and 43%, respectively, as compared to an income tax expense and effective tax rate of $52 million and 6%, respectively, for fiscal 2022.

For the fiscal year ended June 30, 2023, the Company recorded income tax expense of $143 million on pre-tax income of $330 million, resulting in an effective tax rate that was higher than the U.S. statutory tax rate. The tax rate was impacted by foreign operations which are subject to higher tax rates, impairments and valuation allowances recorded against tax benefits in certain businesses.

For the fiscal year ended June 30, 2022, the Company recorded income tax expense of $52 million on pre-tax income of $812 million, resulting in an effective tax rate that was lower than the U.S. statutory tax rate. The tax rate was impacted by foreign operations which are subject to higher tax rates, offset by the reversal of valuation allowances, including $149 million related to certain foreign deferred tax assets that are more likely than not to be realized, the lower tax impact related to the sale of REA Group’s Malaysia and Thailand businesses and the remeasurement of deferred taxes in the U.K.

Management assesses available evidence to determine whether sufficient future taxable income will be generated to permit the use of existing deferred tax assets. Based on management’s assessment of available evidence, it has been determined that it is more likely than not that deferred tax assets in certain foreign jurisdictions may not be realized and therefore, a valuation allowance has been established against those tax assets. See Note 19—Income Taxes in the accompanying Consolidated Financial Statements.

Net income—Net income was $187 million for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2023, as compared to $760 million for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2022, a decrease of $573 million, or 75%, primarily driven by lower Total Segment EBITDA, higher losses from equity affiliates, higher tax expense, lower Other, net and higher impairment and restructuring charges.

Net income attributable to noncontrolling interests—Net income attributable to noncontrolling interests was $38 million for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2023, as compared to $137 million for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2022, a decrease of $99 million, or 72%, primarily driven by the write-down of REA Group’s investment in PropertyGuru in the fiscal year ended June 30, 2023 and the impact of the absence of REA Group’s gain on disposition of its entities in Malaysia and Thailand recognized in fiscal 2022.

Segment Analysis

Segment EBITDA is defined as revenues less operating expenses and selling, general and administrative expenses. Segment EBITDA does not include: depreciation and amortization, impairment and restructuring charges, equity losses of affiliates, interest (expense) income, net, other, net and income tax (expense) benefit. Segment EBITDA may not be comparable to similarly titled measures reported by other companies, since companies and investors may differ as to what items should be included in the calculation of Segment EBITDA.

Segment EBITDA is the primary measure used by the Company’s chief operating decision maker to evaluate the performance of, and allocate resources within, the Company’s businesses. Segment EBITDA provides management, investors and equity analysts with a measure to analyze the operating performance of each of the Company’s business segments and its enterprise value against historical data and competitors’ data, although historical results may not be indicative of future results (as operating performance is highly contingent on many factors, including customer tastes and preferences).

Total Segment EBITDA is a non-GAAP measure and should be considered in addition to, not as a substitute for, net income (loss), cash flow and other measures of financial performance reported in accordance with GAAP. In addition, this measure does not reflect cash available to fund requirements and excludes items, such as depreciation and amortization and impairment and restructuring charges, which are significant components in assessing the Company’s financial performance. The Company believes that the presentation of Total Segment EBITDA provides useful information regarding the Company’s operations and other factors that affect the Company’s reported results. Specifically, the Company believes that by excluding certain one-time or non-cash items such as impairment and restructuring charges and depreciation and amortization, as well as potential distortions between periods caused by factors such as financing and capital structures and changes in tax positions or regimes, the Company provides users of its consolidated financial statements with insight into both its core operations as well as the factors that affect reported results between periods but which the Company believes are not representative of its core business. As a result, users of the Company’s consolidated financial statements are better able to evaluate changes in the core operating results of the Company across different periods.

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The following table reconciles Net income to Total Segment EBITDA for the fiscal years ended June 30, 2023 and 2022:

For the fiscal years ended June 30,
20232022
(in millions)
Net income$187$760
Add:
Income tax expense14352
Other, net(1)(52)
Interest expense, net10099
Equity losses of affiliates12713
Impairment and restructuring charges150109
Depreciation and amortization714688
Total Segment EBITDA$1,420$1,669

The following table sets forth the Company’s Revenues and Segment EBITDA by reportable segment for the fiscal years ended June 30, 2023 and 2022:

For the fiscal years ended June 30,
20232022
(in millions)RevenuesSegment EBITDARevenuesSegment EBITDA
Digital Real Estate Services$1,539$457$1,741$574
Subscription Video Services1,9423472,026360
Dow Jones2,1534942,004433
Book Publishing1,9791672,191306
News Media2,2661562,423217
Other(201)(221)
Total$9,879$1,420$10,385$1,669

Digital Real Estate Services (15% and 17% of the Company’s consolidated revenues in fiscal 2023 and 2022, respectively)

For the fiscal years ended June 30,
20232022Change% Change
(in millions, except %)Better/(Worse)
Revenues:
Circulation and subscription$12$13$(1)(8)%
Advertising14013554%
Real estate1,1891,347(158)(12)%
Other198246(48)(20)%
Total Revenues1,5391,741(202)(12)%
Operating expenses(201)(208)73%
Selling, general and administrative(881)(959)788%
Segment EBITDA$457$574$(117)(20)%

For the fiscal year ended June 30, 2023, revenues at the Digital Real Estate Services segment decreased $202 million, or 12%, as compared to fiscal 2022, including an approximately $14 million impact from the absence of the 53rd week in fiscal 2023. Revenues at Move decreased $110 million, or 15%, to $602 million for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2023 from $712 million in fiscal 2022, primarily driven by the continued impact of the macroeconomic environment on the housing market, including higher interest rates, and the impact of the absence of the 53rd week in fiscal 2023, partially offset by the $10 million increase in advertising revenues. The market downturn resulted in lower lead volumes, which decreased 29%, and lower transaction volumes. Revenues from the referral model, which includes the ReadyConnect Concierge℠ product, and the traditional lead generation product decreased due to these factors, partially offset by improved lead optimization. The referral model generated

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approximately 26% of total Move revenues in fiscal 2023 as compared to approximately 31% in fiscal 2022. At REA Group, revenues decreased $92 million, or 9%, to $937 million for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2023 from $1,029 million in fiscal 2022 primarily driven by the $74 million negative impact of foreign currency fluctuations. The impact of lower national listings on Australian residential revenues and lower financial services revenue driven by lower settlements and the $15 million adverse impact from a valuation adjustment related to expected future trail commissions were partially offset by price increases, increased depth penetration for Australian residential products due to the contribution of Premiere Plus, increased depth penetration for commercial products and higher revenues at REA India.

For the fiscal year ended June 30, 2023, Segment EBITDA at the Digital Real Estate Services segment decreased $117 million, or 20%, as compared to fiscal 2022, primarily due to the lower revenues discussed above, the $34 million, or 6%, negative impact of foreign currency fluctuations and higher costs at REA India, partially offset by lower broker commissions at REA Group due to the valuation adjustment related to expected future trail commissions and lower settlements and lower discretionary and employee costs at Move.

Subscription Video Services (20% of the Company’s consolidated revenues in both fiscal 2023 and 2022)

For the fiscal years ended June 30,
20232022Change% Change
(in millions, except %)Better/(Worse)
Revenues:
Circulation and subscription$1,671$1,753$(82)(5)%
Advertising227232(5)(2)%
Other444137%
Total Revenues1,9422,026(84)(4)%
Operating expenses(1,264)(1,281)171%
Selling, general and administrative(331)(385)5414%
Segment EBITDA$347$360$(13)(4)%

For the fiscal year ended June 30, 2023, revenues at the Subscription Video Services segment decreased $84 million, or 4%, as compared to fiscal 2022 due to the negative impact of foreign currency fluctuations. The $114 million increase in streaming revenues, primarily due to increased volume and pricing at Kayo and BINGE, the $26 million increase in commercial subscription revenues due to the absence of COVID-19 related restrictions imposed in fiscal 2022 and improvements in underlying advertising trends more than offset lower residential subscription revenues resulting from fewer residential broadcast subscribers. Foxtel Group streaming subscription revenues represented approximately 27% of total circulation and subscription revenues for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2023, as compared to 20% in fiscal 2022. The impact of foreign currency fluctuations of the U.S. dollar against local currencies resulted in a revenue decrease of $157 million, or 8%, for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2023, as compared to fiscal 2022.

For the fiscal year ended June 30, 2023, Segment EBITDA decreased $13 million, or 4%, as compared to fiscal 2022 due to the $29 million, or 8%, negative impact of foreign currency fluctuations. Higher sports programming rights and production costs due to contractual increases and enhanced digital rights and higher entertainment programming rights costs due to the availability of content were more than offset by the revenue drivers discussed above, as well as lower transmission and marketing costs.

The following tables provide information regarding certain key performance indicators for the Foxtel Group, the primary reporting unit within the Subscription Video Services segment, as of and for the fiscal years ended June 30, 2023 and 2022. Management believes these metrics provide useful information to allow investors to understand trends in consumer behavior and acceptance of the various services offered by the Foxtel Group. Management utilizes these metrics to track and forecast subscription revenue trends across the business’s various linear and streaming products. See “Part I. Business” for further detail regarding these performance indicators including definitions and methods of calculation.

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As of June 30,
20232022
(in 000s)
Broadcast Subscribers
Residential(a)1,3411,481
Commercial(b)233242
Streaming Subscribers (Total (Paid))(c)
Kayo1,411 (1,401 paid)1,312 (1,293 paid)
BINGE1,541 (1,487 paid)1,263 (1,192 paid)
Foxtel Now177 (170 paid)201 (194 paid)
Total Subscribers (Total (Paid))(d)4,723 (4,650 paid)4,529 (4,413 paid)
For the fiscal years ended June 30,
20232022
Broadcast ARPU(e)A$84 (US$56)A$82 (US$59)
Broadcast Subscriber Churn(f)12.7%13.8%

________________________

(a)Subscribing households throughout Australia as of June 30, 2023 and 2022.

(b)Commercial subscribers throughout Australia as of June 30, 2023 and 2022.

(c)Total and Paid subscribers for the applicable streaming service as of June 30, 2023 and 2022. Paid subscribers excludes customers receiving service for no charge under certain new subscriber promotions.

(d)Total subscribers consists of Foxtel Group’s broadcast and streaming services listed above and its news aggregation streaming service.

(e)Average monthly broadcast residential subscription revenue per user (Broadcast ARPU) for the fiscal years ended June 30, 2023 and 2022.

(f)Broadcast residential subscriber churn rate (Broadcast Subscriber Churn) for the fiscal years ended June 30, 2023 and 2022.

Dow Jones (22% and 19% of the Company’s consolidated revenues in fiscal 2023 and 2022, respectively)

For the fiscal years ended June 30,
20232022Change% Change
(in millions, except %)Better/(Worse)
Revenues:
Circulation and subscription$1,689$1,516$17311%
Advertising413449(36)(8)%
Other51391231%
Total Revenues2,1532,0041497%
Operating expenses(934)(845)(89)(11)%
Selling, general and administrative(725)(726)1%
Segment EBITDA$494$433$6114%

For the fiscal year ended June 30, 2023, revenues at the Dow Jones segment increased $149 million, or 7%, as compared to fiscal 2022, primarily due to the $97 million and $68 million impacts from the acquisitions of OPIS and CMA in the third and fourth quarters of fiscal 2022, respectively, partially offset by the approximately $40 million impact of the absence of the 53rd week in fiscal 2023 and the decrease in advertising revenues. Digital revenues at the Dow Jones segment represented 78% of total revenues for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2023, as compared to 75% in fiscal 2022. The impact of foreign currency fluctuations of the U.S. dollar against local currencies resulted in a revenue decrease of $18 million, or 1%, for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2023 as compared to fiscal 2022.

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Circulation and subscription revenues

For the fiscal years ended June 30,
20232022Change% Change
(in millions, except %)Better/(Worse)
Circulation and subscription revenues:
Circulation and other$929$937$(8)(1)%
Professional information business76057918131%
Total circulation and subscription revenues$1,689$1,516$17311%

Circulation and subscription revenues increased $173 million, or 11%, during the fiscal year ended June 30, 2023 as compared to fiscal 2022. Revenues at the professional information business increased $181 million, or 31%, primarily driven by the acquisitions of OPIS and CMA and the $25 million increase in Risk & Compliance revenues. Circulation and other revenues decreased $8 million, or 1%, driven by the impact of the absence of the 53rd week in fiscal 2023, as growth in digital-only subscriptions, primarily at The Wall Street Journal, more than offset print circulation declines. During the fourth quarter of fiscal 2023, average daily digital-only subscriptions at The Wall Street Journal increased 10% to 3.4 million as compared to fiscal 2022, and digital revenues represented 69% of circulation revenue for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2023, as compared to 67% in fiscal 2022. The impact of the absence of the 53rd week in fiscal 2023 resulted in a circulation and subscription revenue decrease of approximately $31 million.

The following table summarizes average daily consumer subscriptions during the three months ended June 30, 2023 and 2022 for select publications and for all consumer subscription products.(a)

For the three months ended June 30(b),
20232022Change% Change
(in thousands, except %)Better/(Worse)
The Wall Street Journal
Digital-only subscriptions(c)3,4063,09531110%
Total subscriptions3,9663,7492176%
Barron’s Group(d)
Digital-only subscriptions(c)1,01884817020%
Total subscriptions1,1681,03813013%
Total Consumer(e)
Digital-only subscriptions(c)4,5104,02948112%
Total subscriptions5,2424,8983447%

________________________

(a)Based on internal data for the periods from April 3, 2023 to July 2, 2023 and March 28, 2022 to July 3, 2022, respectively, with independent verification procedures performed by PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP UK.

(b)Subscriptions include individual consumer subscriptions, as well as subscriptions purchased by companies, schools, businesses and associations for use by their respective employees, students, customers or members. Subscriptions exclude single-copy sales and copies purchased by hotels, airlines and other businesses for limited distribution or access to customers.

(c)For some publications, including The Wall Street Journal and Barron’s, Dow Jones sells bundled print and digital products. For bundles that provide access to both print and digital products every day of the week, only one unit is reported each day and is designated as a print subscription. For bundled products that provide access to the print product only on specified days and full digital access, one print subscription is reported for each day that a print copy is served and one digital subscription is reported for each remaining day of the week.

(d)Barron’s Group consists of Barron’s, MarketWatch, Financial News and Private Equity News.

(e)Total Consumer consists of The Wall Street Journal, Barron’s Group and Investor’s Business Daily.

Advertising revenues

Advertising revenues decreased $36 million, or 8%, during the fiscal year ended June 30, 2023 as compared to fiscal 2022. Print and digital advertising revenues decreased by $22 million and $14 million, respectively, primarily due to lower advertising spend within the technology and finance sectors. Digital advertising revenues represented 61% of advertising revenue for the fiscal year

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ended June 30, 2023, as compared to 59% in fiscal 2022. The impact of the absence of the 53rd week in fiscal 2023 resulted in an advertising revenue decrease of approximately $9 million.

Segment EBITDA

For the fiscal year ended June 30, 2023, Segment EBITDA at the Dow Jones segment increased $61 million, or 14%, as compared to fiscal 2022, including the $33 million and $26 million contributions from the acquisitions of OPIS and CMA, respectively, primarily due to the increase in revenues discussed above and the absence of $25 million of OPIS and CMA-related transaction costs incurred in fiscal 2022, partially offset by $84 million of higher employee costs primarily due to recent acquisitions.

Book Publishing (20% and 21% of the Company’s consolidated revenues in fiscal 2023 and 2022, respectively)

For the fiscal years ended June 30,
20232022Change% Change
(in millions, except %)Better/(Worse)
Revenues:
Consumer$1,899$2,106$(207)(10)%
Other8085(5)(6)%
Total Revenues1,9792,191(212)(10)%
Operating expenses(1,469)(1,512)433%
Selling, general and administrative(343)(373)308%
Segment EBITDA$167$306$(139)(45)%

For the fiscal year ended June 30, 2023, revenues at the Book Publishing segment decreased $212 million, or 10%, as compared to fiscal 2022, driven by lower print and digital book sales, mainly in the U.S. market, driven by lower consumer demand industry-wide, weak frontlist performance, Amazon’s reset of its inventory levels and rightsizing of its warehouse footprint, which negatively impacted print book sales, the negative impact of foreign currency fluctuations and the approximately $20 million impact of the absence of the 53rd week in fiscal 2023. Digital sales decreased by 5% as compared to fiscal 2022 primarily due to lower e-book sales. Digital sales represented approximately 22% of consumer revenues, as compared to 21% in fiscal 2022, and backlist sales represented approximately 60% of total revenues during the fiscal year ended June 30, 2023. The impact of foreign currency fluctuations of the U.S. dollar against local currencies resulted in a revenue decrease of $58 million, or 3%, for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2023 as compared to fiscal 2022.

For the fiscal year ended June 30, 2023, Segment EBITDA at the Book Publishing segment decreased $139 million, or 45%, as compared to fiscal 2022, primarily due to the lower revenues discussed above and higher manufacturing, freight and distribution costs related to ongoing supply chain challenges and inventory and inflationary pressures, partially offset by lower costs due to lower sales volumes and lower employee costs. These supply chain challenges and inventory and inflationary pressures are expected to continue to impact the business in the near term, but are expected to moderate in fiscal 2024. To mitigate these pressures, the Company has implemented price increases, begun to reduce headcount and continues to evaluate its cost base.

News Media (23% of the Company’s consolidated revenues in both fiscal 2023 and 2022)

For the fiscal years ended June 30,
20232022Change% Change
(in millions, except %)Better/(Worse)
Revenues:
Circulation and subscription$1,075$1,143$(68)(6)%
Advertising9071,005(98)(10)%
Other28427593%
Total Revenues2,2662,423(157)(6)%
Operating expenses(1,256)(1,278)222%
Selling, general and administrative(854)(928)748%
Segment EBITDA$156$217$(61)(28)%

For the fiscal year ended June 30, 2023, revenues at the News Media segment decreased $157 million, or 6%, as compared to fiscal 2022. Advertising revenues decreased $98 million as compared to fiscal 2022, primarily driven by the $70 million negative

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impact of foreign currency fluctuations. Lower print advertising revenues at News UK, the impact of the absence of the 53rd week in fiscal 2023 and lower digital and print advertising revenues at News Corp Australia were partially offset by digital advertising revenue growth at News UK. Circulation and subscription revenues decreased $68 million as compared to fiscal 2022, driven by the $93 million negative impact of foreign currency fluctuations, as cover price increases, digital subscriber growth across key mastheads and higher content licensing revenues were partially offset by print volume declines and the impact of the absence of the 53rd week in fiscal 2023. The impact of foreign currency fluctuations of the U.S. dollar against local currencies resulted in a revenue decrease of $187 million, or 7%, for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2023 as compared to fiscal 2022. The impact of the absence of the 53rd week in fiscal 2023 resulted in a revenue decrease of approximately $36 million.

For the fiscal year ended June 30, 2023, Segment EBITDA at the News Media segment decreased $61 million, or 28%, as compared to fiscal 2022, including the $13 million, or 6%, negative impact of foreign currency fluctuations, primarily due to the lower revenues described above, the $60 million impact of higher pricing on newsprint costs and approximately $50 million of increased costs associated with TalkTV and other digital investments, mainly at News Corp Australia, partially offset by cost savings initiatives.

News Corp Australia

Revenues were $998 million for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2023, a decrease of $90 million, or 8%, as compared to fiscal 2022 revenues of $1,088 million. Advertising revenues decreased $54 million mainly due to the $32 million negative impact of foreign currency fluctuations, lower digital and print advertising revenues and the impact of the absence of the 53rd week in fiscal 2023. Circulation and subscription revenues decreased $34 million due to the $34 million negative impact of foreign currency fluctuations, as print volume declines and the impact of the absence of the 53rd week in fiscal 2023 were offset by cover price increases, digital subscriber growth and higher content licensing revenues. The impact of the absence of the 53rd week in fiscal 2023 resulted in a revenue decrease of approximately $15 million. The impact of foreign currency fluctuations of the U.S. dollar against local currencies resulted in a revenue decrease of $77 million, or 7%, for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2023 as compared to fiscal 2022.

News UK

Revenues were $933 million for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2023, a decrease of $74 million, or 7%, as compared to fiscal 2022 revenues of $1,007 million. Circulation and subscription revenues decreased $41 million due to the $58 million negative impact of foreign currency fluctuations. Higher revenues from cover price increases and digital subscriber growth were partially offset by print volume declines and the impact of the absence of the 53rd week in fiscal 2023. Advertising revenues decreased $25 million due to the $25 million negative impact of foreign currency fluctuations, as lower print advertising revenues and the impact of the absence of the 53rd week in fiscal 2023 were offset by higher digital advertising revenues, mainly at The Sun. The impact of the absence of the 53rd week in fiscal 2023 resulted in a revenue decrease of approximately $18 million. The impact of foreign currency fluctuations of the U.S. dollar against local currencies resulted in a revenue decrease of $94 million, or 9%, for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2023 as compared to fiscal 2022.

LIQUIDITY AND CAPITAL RESOURCES

Current Financial Condition

The Company’s principal source of liquidity is internally generated funds and cash and cash equivalents on hand. As of June 30, 2023, the Company’s cash and cash equivalents were $1,833 million. The Company also has available borrowing capacity under the Revolving Facility and certain other facilities, as described below, and expects to have access to the worldwide credit and capital markets, subject to market conditions, in order to issue additional debt if needed or desired. The Company currently expects these elements of liquidity will enable it to meet its liquidity needs for at least the next 12 months, including repayment of indebtedness. Although the Company believes that its cash on hand and future cash from operations, together with its access to the credit and capital markets, will provide adequate resources to fund its operating and financing needs for at least the next 12 months, its access to, and the availability of, financing on acceptable terms in the future will be affected by many factors, including: (i) the financial and operational performance of the Company and/or its operating subsidiaries, as applicable; (ii) the Company’s credit ratings and/or the credit rating of its operating subsidiaries, as applicable; (iii) the provisions of any relevant debt instruments, credit agreements, indentures and similar or associated documents; (iv) the liquidity of the overall credit and capital markets; and (v) the state of the economy. There can be no assurances that the Company will continue to have access to the credit and capital markets on acceptable terms.

As of June 30, 2023, the Company’s consolidated assets included $902 million in cash and cash equivalents that were held by its foreign subsidiaries. Of this amount, $173 million is cash not readily accessible by the Company as it is held by REA Group, a

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majority owned but separately listed public company. REA Group must declare a dividend in order for the Company to have access to its share of REA Group’s cash balance. Prior to the enactment of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (“Tax Act”), the Company’s undistributed foreign earnings were considered permanently reinvested and as such, United States federal and state income taxes were not previously recorded on these earnings. As a result of the Tax Act, substantially all of the Company’s earnings in foreign subsidiaries generated prior to the enactment of the Tax Act were deemed to have been repatriated and taxed accordingly. As of June 30, 2023, the Company has approximately $800 million of undistributed foreign earnings that it intends to reinvest permanently. It is not practicable to estimate the amount of tax that might be payable if these earnings were repatriated. The Company may repatriate future earnings of certain foreign subsidiaries in which case the Company may be required to accrue and pay additional taxes, including any applicable foreign withholding taxes and income taxes.

The principal uses of cash that affect the Company’s liquidity position include the following: operational expenditures including employee costs, paper purchases and programming costs; capital expenditures; income tax payments; investments in associated entities; acquisitions; the repurchase of shares; dividends; and the repayment of debt and related interest. In addition to the acquisitions and dispositions disclosed elsewhere, the Company has evaluated, and expects to continue to evaluate, possible future acquisitions and dispositions of certain businesses. Such transactions may be material and may involve cash, the issuance of the Company’s securities or the assumption of indebtedness.

Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities

The Board of Directors has authorized a Repurchase Program to purchase up to $1 billion in the aggregate of the Company’s outstanding Class A Common Stock and Class B Common Stock. The manner, timing, number and share price of any repurchases will be determined by the Company at its discretion and will depend upon such factors as the market price of the stock, general market conditions, applicable securities laws, alternative investment opportunities and other factors. The Repurchase Program has no time limit and may be modified, suspended or discontinued at any time. As of June 30, 2023, the remaining authorized amount under the Repurchase Program was approximately $577 million.

Stock repurchases under the Repurchase Program commenced on November 9, 2021. During the fiscal year ended June 30, 2023, the Company repurchased and subsequently retired 9.5 million shares of Class A Common Stock for approximately $159 million and 4.7 million shares of Class B Common Stock for approximately $81 million. During the fiscal year ended June 30, 2022, the Company repurchased and subsequently retired 5.8 million shares of Class A Common Stock for approximately $122 million and 2.9 million shares of Class B Common Stock for approximately $61 million.

Dividends

The following table summarizes the dividends declared and paid per share on both the Company’s Class A Common Stock and Class B Common Stock:

For the fiscal years ended June 30,
20232022
Cash dividends paid per share$0.20$0.20

The timing, declaration, amount and payment of future dividends to stockholders, if any, is within the discretion of the Board of Directors. The Board of Directors’ decisions regarding the payment of future dividends will depend on many factors, including the Company’s financial condition, earnings, capital requirements and debt facility covenants, other contractual restrictions, as well as legal requirements, regulatory constraints, industry practice, market volatility and other factors that the Board of Directors deems relevant.

Sources and Uses of Cash—Fiscal 2023 versus Fiscal 2022

Net cash provided by operating activities for the fiscal years ended June 30, 2023 and 2022 was as follows (in millions):

For the fiscal years ended June 30,20232022
Net cash provided by operating activities$1,092$1,354

Net cash provided by operating activities decreased by $262 million for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2023 as compared to fiscal 2022. The decrease was primarily due to lower Total Segment EBITDA.

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Net cash used in investing activities for the fiscal years ended June 30, 2023 and 2022 was as follows (in millions):

For the fiscal years ended June 30,20232022
Net cash used in investing activities$(574)$(2,076)

Net cash used in investing activities was $574 million for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2023 as compared to net cash used in investing activities of $2,076 million for fiscal 2022.

During the fiscal year ended June 30, 2023, the Company used $499 million of cash for capital expenditures, of which $152 million related to the Foxtel Group, and $120 million for investments and acquisitions. During the fiscal year ended June 30, 2022, the Company used $1,613 million of cash for acquisitions and investments, of which $1,146 million and $288 million related to the acquisitions of OPIS and CMA in February and June 2022, respectively. The Company also used $499 million of cash for capital expenditures, of which $189 million related to the Foxtel Group.

Net cash (used in) provided by financing activities for the fiscal years ended June 30, 2023 and 2022 was as follows (in millions):

For the fiscal years ended June 30,20232022
Net cash (used in) provided by financing activities$(501)$404

The Company had net cash used in financing activities of $501 million for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2023 as compared to net cash provided by financing activities of $404 million for fiscal 2022.

During the fiscal year ended June 30, 2023, the Company had $589 million of borrowing repayments, primarily related to the Foxtel Group’s 2019 Credit Facility and U.S. private placement senior unsecured notes that matured in July 2022, $243 million of repurchases of outstanding Class A and Class B Common Stock under the Repurchase Program and dividend payments of $174 million to News Corporation stockholders and REA Group minority stockholders. The net cash used in financing activities was partially offset by new borrowings related to the Foxtel Group of $514 million.

During the fiscal year ended June 30, 2022, the Company issued $500 million of 2022 Senior Notes and incurred $500 million of Term A Loans and had new borrowings for REA Group and the Foxtel Group of $690 million. The net cash provided by financing activities was partially offset by $838 million of borrowing repayments, primarily related to the Foxtel Group’s 2019 Credit Facility and REA Group’s refinancing of its bridge facility, $179 million of repurchases of outstanding Class A and Class B Common Stock under the Repurchase Program and dividend payments of $175 million to News Corporation stockholders and REA Group minority stockholders. See Note 9—Borrowings in the accompanying Consolidated Financial Statements.

Reconciliation of Free Cash Flow and Free Cash Flow Available to News Corporation

Free cash flow and free cash flow available to News Corporation are non-GAAP financial measures. Free cash flow is defined as net cash provided by operating activities, less capital expenditures, and free cash flow available to News Corporation is defined as free cash flow, less REA Group free cash flow, plus cash dividends received from REA Group. Free cash flow and free cash flow available to News Corporation should be considered in addition to, not as a substitute for, cash flows from operations and other measures of financial performance reported in accordance with GAAP. Free cash flow and free cash flow available to News Corporation may not be comparable to similarly titled measures reported by other companies, since companies and investors may differ as to what items should be included in the calculation of free cash flow.

The Company believes free cash flow provides useful information to management and investors about the Company’s liquidity and cash flow trends. The Company believes free cash flow available to News Corporation, which adjusts free cash flow to exclude REA Group’s free cash flow and include dividends received from REA Group, provides management and investors with a measure of the amount of cash flow that is readily available to the Company, as REA Group is a separately listed public company in Australia and must declare a dividend in order for the Company to have access to its share of REA Group’s cash balance. The Company believes free cash flow available to News Corporation provides a more conservative view of the Company’s free cash flow because this presentation includes only that amount of cash the Company actually receives from REA Group, which has generally been lower than the Company’s unadjusted free cash flow.

A limitation of both free cash flow and free cash flow available to News Corporation is that they do not represent the total increase or decrease in the cash balance for the period. Management compensates for the limitation of free cash flow and free cash flow available to News Corporation by also relying on the net change in cash and cash equivalents as presented in the Statements of Cash Flows prepared in accordance with GAAP which incorporate all cash movements during the period.

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The following table presents a reconciliation of net cash provided by operating activities to free cash flow and free cash flow available to News Corporation:

For the fiscal years ended June 30,
20232022
(in millions)
Net cash provided by operating activities$1,092$1,354
Less: Capital expenditures(499)(499)
Free cash flow593855
Less: REA Group free cash flow(234)(279)
Plus: Cash dividends received from REA Group9187
Free cash flow available to News Corporation$450$663

Free cash flow in the fiscal year ended June 30, 2023 was $593 million compared to $855 million in the prior year. Free cash flow available to News Corporation in the fiscal year ended June 30, 2023 was $450 million compared to $663 million in the prior year. Free cash flow and free cash flow available to News Corporation decreased primarily due to lower cash provided by operating activities, as discussed above.

Borrowings

As of June 30, 2023, the Company, certain subsidiaries of NXE Australia Pty Limited (the “Foxtel Group” and together with such subsidiaries, the “Foxtel Debt Group”) and REA Group and certain of its subsidiaries (REA Group and certain of its subsidiaries, the “REA Debt Group”) had total borrowings of $3 billion, including the current portion. Both the Foxtel Group and REA Group are consolidated but non wholly-owned subsidiaries of News Corp, and their indebtedness is only guaranteed by members of the Foxtel Debt Group and REA Debt Group, respectively, and is non-recourse to News Corp.

News Corporation Borrowings

As of June 30, 2023, the Company had (i) borrowings of $1,978 million, consisting of its outstanding 2021 Senior Notes, 2022 Senior Notes and Term A Loans and (ii) $750 million of undrawn commitments available under the Revolving Facility.

Foxtel Group Borrowings

As of June 30, 2023, the Foxtel Debt Group had (i) borrowings of approximately $736 million, including the full drawdown of its 2019 Term Loan Facility, amounts outstanding under the 2019 Credit Facility and 2017 Working Capital Facility, its outstanding U.S. private placement senior unsecured notes and amounts outstanding under the Telstra Facility (described below), and (ii) total undrawn commitments of A$161 million available under the 2017 Working Capital Facility and 2019 Credit Facility.

In July 2022, the Foxtel Group repaid its U.S. private placement senior unsecured notes that matured in July 2022 using capacity under the 2019 Credit Facility.

On August 14, 2023, the Foxtel Group entered into an agreement (the “2023 Foxtel Credit Agreement”) for a new A$1.2 billion syndicated credit facility (the “2023 Credit Facility”), which will be used to refinance its A$610 million 2019 Credit Facility, A$250 million Term Loan Facility and tranche 3 of its 2012 U.S. private placement. The 2023 Credit Facility consists of three sub-facilities: (i) an A$817.5 million three year revolving credit facility (the “2023 Credit Facility — tranche 1”), (ii) a US$48.7 million four year term loan facility (the “2023 Credit Facility — tranche 2”) and (iii) an A$311 million four year term loan facility (the “2023 Credit Facility — tranche 3”). In addition, the Foxtel Group amended its 2017 Working Capital Facility to extend the maturity to August 2026 and modify the pricing.

Depending on the Foxtel Group’s net leverage ratio, (i) borrowings under the 2023 Credit Facility — tranche 1 and 2017 Working Capital Facility bear interest at a rate of the Australian BBSY plus a margin of between 2.35% and 3.60%; (ii) borrowings under the 2023 Credit Facility — tranche 2 bear interest at a rate based on a Term SOFR formula, as set forth in the 2023 Foxtel Credit Agreement, plus a margin of between 2.50% and 3.75%; and (iii) borrowings under the 2023 Credit Facility — tranche 3 bear interest at a rate of the Australian BBSY plus a margin of between 2.50% and 3.75%. All tranches carry a commitment fee of 45% of the applicable margin on any undrawn balance during the relevant availability period. Tranches 2 and 3 of the 2023 Credit Facility amortize on a proportionate basis in an aggregate annual amount equal to A$35 million in each of the first two years following closing and A$40 million in each of the two years thereafter. The refinancing is expected to close in the first quarter of fiscal 2024, subject to customary closing conditions.

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The 2023 Foxtel Credit Agreement contains customary affirmative and negative covenants and events of default, with customary exceptions, that are generally consistent with those governing the Foxtel Debt Group’s external borrowings as of June 30, 2023, including financial covenants requiring maintenance of the same net debt to Earnings Before Interest, Tax, Depreciation and Amortization (“EBITDA”) and net interest coverage ratios.

In addition to third-party indebtedness, the Foxtel Debt Group has related party indebtedness, including A$700 million of outstanding principal of shareholder loans and A$200 million of available shareholder facilities from the Company. The shareholder loans bear interest at a variable rate of the Australian BBSY plus an applicable margin ranging from 6.30% to 7.75% and mature in December 2027. The shareholder revolving credit facility bears interest at a variable rate of the Australian BBSY plus an applicable margin ranging from 2.00% to 3.75%, depending on the Foxtel Debt Group’s net leverage ratio, and matures in July 2024. In connection with the refinancing, the shareholder revolving credit facility will be terminated, and beginning September 30, 2023, amounts outstanding under the shareholder loans are permitted to be repaid if (i) no actual or potential event of default exists both before and immediately after repayment and (ii) the net debt to EBITDA ratio of the Foxtel Debt Group was on the most recent covenant calculation date, and would be immediately after the cash repayment, less than or equal to 2.25 to 1.0. Additionally, the Foxtel Debt Group has an A$170 million subordinated shareholder loan facility with Telstra which can be used to finance cable transmission costs due to Telstra. The Telstra Facility bears interest at a variable rate of the Australian BBSY plus an applicable margin of 7.75% and matures in December 2027. The Company excludes the utilization of the Telstra Facility from the Statements of Cash Flows because it is non-cash.

REA Group Borrowings

As of June 30, 2023, REA Group had (i) borrowings of approximately $211 million, consisting of amounts outstanding under its 2022 Credit Facility, and (ii) A$281 million of undrawn commitments available under its 2022 Credit Facility.

All of the Company’s borrowings contain customary representations, covenants and events of default. The Company was in compliance with all such covenants at June 30, 2023.

See Note 9—Borrowings in the accompanying Consolidated Financial Statements for further details regarding the Company’s outstanding debt, including additional information about interest rates, amortization (if any), maturities and covenants related to such debt arrangements.

Commitments

The Company has commitments under certain firm contractual arrangements (“firm commitments”) to make future payments. These firm commitments secure the current and future rights to various assets and services to be used in the normal course of operations.

The following table summarizes the Company’s material firm commitments as of June 30, 2023:

As of June 30, 2023
Payments Due by Period
TotalLess than 1 year1-3 years3-5 yearsMore than 5 years
(in millions)
Purchase obligations(a)$1,584$562$620$355$47
Sports programming rights(b)3,7325011,0739501,208
Programming costs(c)1,444430528359127
Operating leases(d)
Transmission costs(e)13224323046
Land and buildings1,6061362571991,014
Plant and machinery844
Finance leases
Transmission costs(e)432815
Borrowings(f)2,9453335625501,500
Interest payments on borrowings(g)613120189163141
Total commitments and contractual obligations$12,107$2,138$3,280$2,606$4,083

________________________

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(a)The Company has commitments under purchase obligations related to minimum subscriber guarantees for license fees, printing contracts, capital projects, marketing agreements, production services and other legally binding commitments.

(b)The Company has sports programming rights commitments with the National Rugby League, Australian Football League and Cricket Australia, as well as certain other broadcast rights, which are payable through fiscal 2032.

(c)The Company has programming rights commitments with various suppliers for programming content.

(d)The Company leases office facilities, warehouse facilities, printing plants, satellite services and equipment. These leases, which are classified as operating leases, are expected to be paid at certain dates through fiscal 2048. Amounts reflected represent only the Company’s lease obligations for which it has firm commitments.

(e)The Company has contractual commitments for satellite transmission services. The Company’s satellite transponder services arrangements extend through fiscal 2032 and are accounted for as operating or finance leases, based on the underlying terms of those arrangements.

(f)See Note 9—Borrowings in the accompanying Consolidated Financial Statements.

(g)Reflects the Company’s expected future interest payments based on borrowings outstanding and interest rates applicable at June 30, 2023. Such rates are subject to change in future periods. See Note 9—Borrowings in the accompanying Consolidated Financial Statements.

The Company has certain contracts to purchase newsprint, ink and plates that require the Company to purchase a percentage of its total requirements for production. Since the quantities purchased annually under these contracts are not fixed and are based on the Company’s total requirements, the amount of the related payments for these purchases is excluded from the table above.

The table also excludes the Company’s pension obligations, other postretirement benefits (“OPEB”) obligations and the liabilities for unrecognized tax benefits for uncertain tax positions as the Company is unable to reasonably predict the ultimate amount and timing of the commitments. The Company made contributions of $14 million and $29 million to its pension plans in fiscal 2023 and fiscal 2022, respectively. Future plan contributions are dependent upon actual plan asset returns, interest rates and statutory requirements. The Company anticipates that it will make required contributions of approximately $23 million in fiscal 2024, assuming that actual plan asset returns are consistent with the Company’s returns in fiscal 2023 and those expected beyond, and that interest rates remain constant. The Company will continue to make voluntary contributions as necessary to improve the funded status of the plans. Payments due to participants under the Company’s pension plans are primarily paid out of underlying trusts. Payments due under the Company’s OPEB plans are not required to be funded in advance, but are paid as medical costs are incurred by covered retiree populations, and are principally dependent upon the future cost of retiree medical benefits under the Company’s OPEB plans. The Company expects its OPEB payments to approximate $7 million in fiscal 2024. See Note 17—Retirement Benefit Obligations and Note 18—Other Postretirement Benefits in the accompanying Consolidated Financial Statements.

Other significant ongoing expenses or cash requirements for each of the Company’s segments are discussed above in “Overview of the Company’s Businesses.” The Company generally expects to fund these short and long-term cash requirements with internally-generated funds and cash and cash equivalents on hand.

Contingencies

The Company routinely is involved in various legal proceedings, claims and governmental inspections or investigations, including those discussed in Note 16—Commitments and Contingencies in the accompanying Consolidated Financial Statements. The outcome of these matters and claims is subject to significant uncertainty, and the Company often cannot predict what the eventual outcome of pending matters will be or the timing of the ultimate resolution of these matters. Fees, expenses, fines, penalties, judgments or settlement costs which might be incurred by the Company in connection with the various proceedings could adversely affect its results of operations and financial condition.

The Company establishes an accrued liability for legal claims when it determines that a loss is both probable and the amount of the loss can be reasonably estimated. Once established, accruals are adjusted from time to time, as appropriate, in light of additional information. The amount of any loss ultimately incurred in relation to matters for which an accrual has been established may be higher or lower than the amounts accrued for such matters. Legal fees associated with litigation and similar proceedings are expensed as incurred. The Company recognizes gain contingencies when the gain becomes realized or realizable. See Note 16—Commitments and Contingencies in the accompanying Consolidated Financial Statements.

The Company’s tax returns are subject to on-going review and examination by various tax authorities. Tax authorities may not agree with the treatment of items reported in the Company’s tax returns, and therefore the outcome of tax reviews and examinations can be unpredictable. The Company believes it has appropriately accrued for the expected outcome of uncertain tax

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matters and believes such liabilities represent a reasonable provision for taxes ultimately expected to be paid. However, these liabilities may need to be adjusted as new information becomes known and as tax examinations continue to progress, or as settlements or litigations occur.

CRITICAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES AND ESTIMATES

An accounting policy is considered to be critical if it is important to the Company’s financial condition and results of operations and if it requires significant judgment and estimates on the part of management in its application. The development and selection of these critical accounting policies have been determined by management of the Company. See Note 2—Summary of Significant Accounting Policies in the accompanying Consolidated Financial Statements.

Goodwill and Indefinite-lived Intangible Assets

The Company tests goodwill and indefinite-lived intangible assets for impairment on an annual basis in the fourth quarter and at other times if a significant event or change in circumstances indicates that it is more likely than not that the fair value of these assets has been reduced below their carrying value. The Company uses its judgment in assessing whether assets may have become impaired between annual impairment assessments. Indicators such as unexpected adverse economic factors, unanticipated technological changes or competitive activities, loss of key personnel and acts by governments and courts, may signal that an asset has become impaired.

Under ASC 350, in assessing goodwill for impairment, the Company has the option to first perform a qualitative assessment to determine whether events or circumstances exist that lead to a determination that it is more likely than not that the fair value of a reporting unit is less than its carrying amount. If the Company determines that it is not more likely than not that the fair value of a reporting unit is less than its carrying amount, the Company is not required to perform any additional tests in assessing goodwill for impairment. However, if the Company concludes otherwise or elects not to perform the qualitative assessment, then it is required to perform a quantitative analysis to determine the fair value of the reporting unit, and compare the calculated fair value of a reporting unit with its carrying amount, including goodwill. The Company determines the fair value of a reporting unit primarily by using both a discounted cash flow analysis and market-based valuation approach.

Determining fair value requires the exercise of significant judgments, including judgments about appropriate discount rates, long-term growth rates, relevant comparable company earnings multiples and the amount and timing of expected future cash flows. During the fourth quarter of fiscal 2023, as part of the Company’s long-range planning process, the Company completed its annual goodwill and indefinite-lived intangible asset impairment test.

The performance of the Company’s annual impairment analysis resulted in $25 million of impairments to indefinite-lived intangible assets and no write-downs of goodwill in fiscal 2023. Significant unobservable inputs utilized in the income approach valuation method were discount rates (ranging from 8.5% to 18.0%), long-term growth rates (ranging from 1.0% to 3.5%) and royalty rates (ranging from 0.25% to 7.0%). Significant unobservable inputs utilized in the market approach valuation method were EBITDA multiples from guideline public companies operating in similar industries and control premiums (ranging from 5.0% to 10.0%). Significant increases (decreases) in royalty rates, growth rates, control premiums and multiples, assuming no change in discount rates, would result in a significantly higher (lower) fair value measurement. Significant decreases (increases) in discount rates, assuming no changes in royalty rates, growth rates, control premiums and multiples, would result in a significantly higher (lower) fair value measurement. See Note 8—Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets in the accompanying Consolidated Financial Statements for further details regarding changes in these inputs and assumptions compared to prior fiscal years.

As of June 30, 2023, there were no reporting units with goodwill at-risk for future impairment. The Company will continue to monitor its goodwill for possible future impairment.

Programming Costs

Costs incurred in acquiring programming rights are accounted for in accordance with ASC 920, “Entertainment—Broadcasters.” Programming rights and the related liabilities are recorded at the gross amount of the liabilities when the license period has begun, the cost of the program is determinable and the program is accepted and available for airing. Programming costs are amortized based on the expected pattern of consumption over the license period or expected useful life of each program, which requires significant judgment. The pattern of consumption is based primarily on consumer viewership information as well as other factors. If initial airings are expected to generate higher viewership, an accelerated method of amortization is used. The Company monitors its programming amortization policy on an ongoing basis and any impact arising from changes to the policy would be

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recognized prospectively. The Company regularly reviews its programming assets to ensure they continue to reflect fair value. Changes in circumstances may result in a write-down of the asset to fair value. The Company has single and multi-year contracts for broadcast rights of sporting events. The costs of sports contracts are primarily charged to expense over the respective season as events are aired. For sports contracts with dedicated channels, the Company amortizes the sports programming rights costs over 12 months.

Income Taxes

The Company is subject to income taxes in the U.S. and various foreign jurisdictions in which it operates and records its tax provision for the anticipated tax consequences in its reported results of operations. Tax laws are complex and subject to different interpretations by the taxpayer and respective governmental taxing authorities. Significant judgment is required in determining the Company’s tax expense and in evaluating its tax positions including evaluating uncertainties as promulgated under ASC 740, “Income Taxes.”

The Company’s annual tax rate is based primarily on its geographic income and statutory tax rates in the various jurisdictions in which it operates. Significant management judgment is required in determining the Company’s provision for income taxes, deferred tax assets and liabilities and the valuation allowance recorded against the Company’s net deferred tax assets, if any. In assessing the likelihood of realization of deferred tax assets, management considers estimates of the amount and character of future taxable income. The Company’s actual effective tax rate and income tax expense could vary from estimated amounts due to the future impacts of various items, including changes in income tax laws, tax planning and the Company’s forecasted financial condition and results of operations in future periods. Although the Company believes its current estimates are reasonable, actual results could differ from these estimates.

The Company recognizes tax benefits from uncertain tax positions only if it is more likely than not that the tax position will be sustained on examination by the taxing authorities, based on the technical merits of the position. The tax benefits recognized in the Consolidated Financial Statements from such positions are then measured based on the largest benefit that has a greater than 50% likelihood of being realized upon ultimate settlement. Significant management judgment is required to determine whether the recognition threshold has been met and, if so, the appropriate amount of unrecognized tax benefits to be recorded in the Consolidated Financial Statements. Management re-evaluates tax positions each period in which new information about recognition or measurement becomes available. The Company’s policy is to recognize, when applicable, interest and penalties on unrecognized income tax benefits as part of Income tax (expense) benefit.

See Note 19—Income Taxes in the accompanying Consolidated Financial Statements for further details regarding these estimates and assumptions and changes compared to prior fiscal years.

Retirement Benefit Obligations

The Company’s employees participate in various defined benefit pension and postretirement plans sponsored by the Company and its subsidiaries. See Note 17—Retirement Benefit Obligations in the accompanying Consolidated Financial Statements.

The Company records amounts relating to its pension and other postretirement benefit plans based on calculations specified by GAAP. The measurement and recognition of the Company’s pension and other postretirement benefit plans require the use of significant management judgments, including discount rates, expected return on plan assets, mortality and other actuarial assumptions. Net periodic benefit costs (income) are calculated based upon a number of actuarial assumptions, including a discount rate for plan obligations, an expected rate of return on plan assets and mortality rates. Current market conditions, including changes in investment returns and interest rates, were considered in making these assumptions. In developing the expected long-term rate of return, the pension portfolio’s past average rate of returns and future return expectations of the various asset classes were considered. The weighted average expected long-term rate of return of 5.6% for fiscal 2024 is based on a weighted average target asset allocation assumption of 16% equities, 74% fixed-income securities and 10% cash and other investments.

The Company recorded $13 million and nil in net periodic benefit costs (income) in the Statements of Operations for the fiscal years ended June 30, 2023 and 2022, respectively. The Company utilizes the full yield-curve approach to estimate the service and interest cost components of net periodic benefit costs (income) for its pension and other postretirement benefit plans.

Although the discount rate used for each plan will be established and applied individually, a weighted average discount rate of 5.4% will be used in calculating the fiscal 2024 net periodic benefit costs (income). The discount rate reflects the market rate for high-quality fixed-income investments on the Company’s annual measurement date of June 30 and is subject to change each fiscal

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year. The discount rate assumptions used to account for pension and other postretirement benefit plans reflect the rates at which the benefit obligations could be effectively settled. The rate was determined by matching the Company’s expected benefit payments for the plans to a hypothetical yield curve developed using a portfolio of several hundred high-quality non-callable corporate bonds. The weighted average discount rate is volatile from year to year because it is determined based upon the prevailing rates in the U.S., the U.K., Australia and other foreign countries as of the measurement date.

The key assumptions used in developing the Company’s fiscal 2023 and 2022 net periodic benefit costs (income) for its plans consist of the following:

20232022
(in millions, except %)
Weighted average assumptions used to determine net periodic benefit costs (income):
Discount rate for PBO4.1%2.1%
Discount rate for Service Cost4.8%1.8%
Discount rate for Interest on PBO4.0%1.7%
Assets:
Expected rate of return4.3%3.7%
Expected return$43$51
Actual return$(92)$(215)
Loss$(135)$(266)
One year actual return(8.7)%(15.6)%
Five year actual return(1.7)%0.8%

The Company will use a weighted average long-term rate of return of 5.6% for fiscal 2024 based principally on a combination of current asset mix and an expectation of future long term investment returns. The accumulated net pre-tax losses on the Company’s pension plans as of June 30, 2023 were approximately $467 million which increased from approximately $458 million for the Company’s pension plans as of June 30, 2022. This net increase of $9 million was primarily due to losses on plan assets, which were largely offset by actuarial gains due to higher discount rates. Lower discount rates increase present values of benefit obligations and increase the Company’s deferred losses and also increase subsequent-year benefit costs. Higher discount rates decrease the present values of benefit obligations and reduce the Company’s accumulated net loss and decrease subsequent-year benefit costs. These deferred losses are being systematically recognized in future net periodic benefit costs (income) in accordance with ASC 715, “Compensation—Retirement Benefits.” Unrecognized losses for the primary plans in excess of 10% of the greater of the market-related value of plan assets or the plan’s projected benefit obligation are recognized over the average life expectancy for plan participants for the primary plans.

The Company made contributions of $14 million and $29 million to its pension plans in fiscal 2023 and 2022, respectively. Future plan contributions are dependent upon actual plan asset returns, statutory requirements and interest rate movements. Assuming that actual plan asset returns are consistent with the Company’s expected returns in fiscal 2023 and beyond, and that interest rates remain constant, the Company anticipates that it will make required pension contributions of approximately $23 million in fiscal 2024. The Company will continue to make voluntary contributions as necessary to improve the funded status of the plans. See Note 17—Retirement Benefit Obligations and Note 18—Other Postretirement Benefits in the accompanying Consolidated Financial Statements.

Changes in net periodic benefit costs may occur in the future due to changes in the Company’s expected rate of return on plan assets and discount rate resulting from economic events. The following table highlights the sensitivity of the Company’s pension obligations and expense to changes in these assumptions, assuming all other assumptions remain constant:

Changes in AssumptionImpact on Annual Pension ExpenseImpact on Projected Benefit Obligation
0.25 percentage point decrease in discount rateIncrease $23 million
0.25 percentage point increase in discount rateDecrease $22 million
0.25 percentage point decrease in expected rate of return on assetsIncrease $2 million
0.25 percentage point increase in expected rate of return on assetsDecrease $2 million

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