NEW YORK • The Wall Street Journal, part of Mr Rupert Murdoch's News Corp, is closing down print editions in Asia and Europe as a result of shrinking advertising.
The Europe edition ended its print run yesterday, and the Asian edition will end a week later, the newspaper reported on Thursday in an article, citing company officials.
The article said affected staffers have been reassigned.
Over the past year, the Journal has been implementing "WSJ 2020" - a three-year plan to adapt to consumers who are getting their news increasingly on their mobile phones.
Part of the plan involved staff cuts and folding and merging some sections of the print newspaper.
Earlier this year, a union representative told Bloomberg News that the Journal was laying off employees at bureaus in Asia and Europe.
At the time, the company said that "we remain committed to covering the region".
Like other newspapers, the Journal is trying to attract more subscribers online to make up for the steady decline in print advertising. In the most recent quarter, the parent paper's ad revenue fell 12 per cent.
The Journal had about 1.3 million digital-only subscribers at the end of the quarter. The paper has also been raising the price of subscriptions.
The Asian edition was launched in 1976, with the one in Europe starting in 1983, the newspaper said.
Bloomberg LP, the parent of Bloomberg News, competes with News Corp and the Journal in providing financial news and services.
BLOOMBERG
