Murdoch pledges no more News Corp writedowns

Rupert Murdoch, the media baron, vowed that his News Corporation empire would take no more hefty write-offs and said earnings growth could be expected amid signs of a US advertising rebound.

At the company's annual general meeting in Australia and flanked by his heirs apparent – sons Lachlan and James – Mr Murdoch said News Corp's 42 per cent owned Gemstar-TV Guide International business had agreed to a long-awaited management reshuffle that would put back on track the company which cost News Corp $6bn (£3.9bn) in write-offs last year.

Declaring News Corp has survived the "dark days" after the 11 September terrorist attacks, Mr Murdoch told shareholders in the company's home town of Adelaide the group was "as fundamentally as strong as any time in its history".

"We are in excellent shape to deliver the strong double-digit growth we have forecast," Mr Murdoch said.

The News Corp chairman reassured shareholders no more write-offs were anticipated on News Corp's investments after it posted the biggest loss in Australian corporate history last year 12bn Australian dollars (£4.3bn). That followed $6.9bn in write-downs on Gemstar and Germany's KirchMedia.

The Gemstar shake-up places board control firmly in News Corp hands, replacing the chief executive, Henry Yuen, with former News Corp executive Jeff Shell, after a string of legal setbacks and questions over accounting practices that have seen Gemstar shares drop 90 per cent since the start of 2002.

George Colman, an analyst at Salomon Smith Barney, said: "The commentary on sharp improvement in advertising was largely as expected but nevertheless reiteration of operating momentum and the company's earnings guidance is a point of positive differentiation in this market environment."

That was not enough to stop News Corp shares ending 16 cents, or 1.8 per cent, lower in an overall weaker market beset by worries over Iraq and the US economy. News Corp shares have fallen more than 40 per cent since the start of 2002.

Separately, it emerged in the UK, that Tony Ball, the chief executive of BSkyB, which is part-owned by News Corp, was paid £2.05m for the last financial year, after receiving a £1.25m bonus.