Rupert Murdoch sketched out his plans for the Fox Business Network on Friday, saying he will spend years nurturing the new channel to win over more than half of the business news audience.
The News Corp chairman and chief executive confirmed media reports that his media conglomerate intended to invest $150 million to $200 million over three years in FBN, including about $70 million in fiscal 2008.
Aiming to repeat the success of the Fox News Channel, which unseated CNN as the top cable news network four years after its launch, FBN is part of Murdoch's ambitions to build a global financial media powerhouse in print, the Internet and TV.
"I view FBN's growth in terms of years, not months," he told reporters following News Corp's annual shareholders meeting.
The 76-year-old mogul said he aimed to chip away at the competition -- the market leader for cable business news is CNBC -- while forging a broader audience beyond day traders and finance professionals.
"We'd like to take some of their viewers," he told reporters, referring to CNBC. "Our objective is to have more than half of it," he said, referring to business news viewers.
While some critics question whether there was room for a third cable business news channel after CNBC and Bloomberg TV, Murdoch pointed out that his investments pay off.
He said the company's $900 million investment in the Fox News Channel is expected to earn at least as much annually. Its value, he said, is to exceed $10 billion. ( Reuters )