Murdoch: Fox Business Network Needs Distribution

Target For Fledgling Financial Network Is At Least 60 Million Homes

By Mike Farrell -- Multichannel News, 3/10/2008 2:20:00 PM

News Corp. chairman Rupert Murdoch said that the media giant is bent on increasing distribution for its Fox Business Network.

FBN already is available in about 35 million homes, Murdoch said at the Bear Stearns Media Conference in Pam Beach, Fla. Monday. He said that the network needs to get to at least 60 million homes before it starts hitting its stride.

“What we have to do is get distribution,” Murdoch said. “We’re working very hard at getting more distribution. We’re already in maybe 35 million homes. We’ve got to get to 60 million homes, and then Roger [Ailes, chairman and CEO of both cable networks, as well as Fox Television Station Group] can really blast CNBC.”

Murdoch said that while Fox Business, which launched Oct. 15,  is ready to fight for viewers with CNBC, one spat its parent won’t get into is with Microsoft Corp. over Yahoo. Microsoft launched a $44.6 billion bid to take control of the Internet portal earlier this year. News Corp. has been said to want to get into the bidding.

“We’re not going to get into a fight with Microsoft, they have got a lot more money than us,” Murdoch said.

Murdoch said that while it “would have been nice,” to get a deal with Yahoo, “that is probably not possible now.”