Rupert Murdoch's News Corp has emphasised cost-cutting, its diversified portfolio and its book publishing arm, as a slump in revenue from its ''challenged'' Australian newspapers contributed to a 5 per cent decline in revenue.

News Corp, the publishing and newspaper business split last year from the favoured entertainment assets, this morning reported a 5 per cent decline in year-on-year revenue to $US2.08 billion, due to falls in advertising revenue and currency fluctuations.

Presenting its third quarterly results since the demerger, News Corp Australia said ad revenues slumped by 24 per cent, or mid-teens in Australian dollars, in the three months to 31 March. Australian newspaper revenues slumped by 21 per cent over the quarter, of which 13 per cent related to foreign currency.

Analysts have described the 2014 as a year of transition for News Corp. Neil Boyd-Clark of Arnhem Investment Management said the result looked like a reasonably good one, with books a ''standout area'' and its majority owned real estate classified business REA ''reasonably robust.''

News Corp does not break down its results by regions, although Australia has provided about 30 per cent of News Corp's revenues from its newspapers, REA, HarperCollins Australia, a half-stake in Foxtel and Fox Sports Australia.