Rupert Murdoch's News Corp to buy real estate listing company Move for $950M

News Corp, a publishing company controlled by media honcho Rupert Murdoch, has agreed to acquire California-based Move Inc., the company behind the real estate listing portals Move.com and Realtor.com, for about $950 million in an all-cash deal.

While News Corp. will hold 80 per cent stake in Move, its subsidiary and Australian residential property listing company, REA Group Limited, will hold the remaining 20 per cent in the firm. Post acquisition, Move will become an operating business of News Corp.

According to News Corp., the acquisition will help Move to reach out to more users via its platforms such as WSJ Digital Network and News America Marketing.

"This acquisition will accelerate News Corp's digital and global expansion and contribute to the transformation of our company, making online real estate a powerful pillar of our portfolio," said Robert Thomson, chief executive of News Corp.

"We intend to use our media platforms and compelling content to turbo-charge traffic growth and create the most successful real estate website in the US. We are building on our existing real estate expertise and expect to leverage the potential of Move and its valuable connections with Realtors and consumers around the country," Thomson added.

Move Inc was started in 1993. In addition to Move.com and Realtor.com, the Move network also runs ListHub, a digital platform that aggregates and syndicates data to online publishers, and Realtor.com. The firm currently employs more than 900 people.

For the year ended December 31, 2013, Move reported $227 million revenues and $29 million adjusted EBITDA.