Rupert Murdoch Takes Internet Distribution Seriously

News Corp. chief Rupert Murdoch is one media head who realizes both the threat and the opportunity Internet distribution poses to his empire, according to this article from Variety:

News Corp. chief Rupert Murdoch is fretting about the hefty cost of making and marketing movies as the day nears when pics can be put together cheaply and reach wide auds directly on the Internet.

Auds??

"It's an expensive game," he told investors at a media conference in Phoenix. "Especially if filmmakers can bypass studios for broadband."

As a result, "Our business models have to change and we're busy preparing ourselves for that," he said.

Murdoch said News Corp.'s MySpace.com will start offering free video downloads this week. "There will be millions of downloads a day probably," he said. He was likely referring to musicvideos, but it wasn't immediately clear.

He said he expects News Corp.'s newly acquired Net assets to hit revenue of $350 million-$400 million by 2007 if current trends continue...