NEWS Corp's satellite television arm, DirecTV, could spend up to $US1 billion ($1.335 billion) to enter the wireless high-speed internet market, Rupert Murdoch told analysts on Monday.
The 74-year-old left analysts at Citigroup's global media conference in no doubt that he is staking News Corp's future growth on the internet. In the past six months the company has spent $US1.3 billion picking up internet businesses, including community website Myspace.com and online video company IGN Entertainment.
Those businesses should add between $US350 million and $US400 million in revenue next year and would "take off after that", Mr Murdoch said.
His latest plan is to compete with cable and telecommunications companies to offer wireless high-speed internet access via DirecTV, in which News Corp has a controlling stake.
"We have a lot of people on this full time at the moment," he said during Monday's conference in Arizona.
"You'll be hearing from us within two months on a very clear plan what will happen, and it's not as expensive as you might think."
DirecTV, which has $US4 billion in cash, will pay for the investment. It is looking at strategies and potential partners and could look at a deal involving WiMax technology, an emerging form of high-speed wireless service.
Mr Murdoch also told analysts that he would hold discussions with rival media mogul John Malone in the next two to three months. Mr Malone's Liberty Media built up an 18 per cent stake in News Corp in late 2004, prompting Mr Murdoch and the board to introduce a controversial "poison pill" provision, which is the subject of a coming court case.
But Mr Murdoch said News Corp and Liberty were on "friendly" terms.
"I hope we can go forward and do a deal. Otherwise, Liberty is going to stay as a long-term shareholder," he said.
"They believe we're grossly undervalued."
Mr Murdoch's focus was on the internet. He said the Myspace.com had more than 47 million registered users with an average age of about 20.
