News Corp. Buys 2 Web Start-Ups

Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp. bought two Internet start-ups to enhance service for 70 million users of Fox Interactive Media websites worldwide, the company said Monday.

News Corp. bought Newroo Inc., whose tools scan websites to find relevant information and news, and Ksolo Inc., which gives singalong, or karaoke, fans a way to create and share their own recorded songs. Los Angeles-based Fox Interactive Media didn’t disclose terms of the acquisitions.

Buying the two companies helps News Corp. expand beyond television, film and newspapers onto the Web to capture a bigger share of online advertising. New York-based News Corp. has spent more than $1.2 billion to buy Web companies including MySpace.com, a popular social networking site, since April 2005.

New York-based Ksolo’s kSolo.com site lets users pick a favorite tune, play it sans vocals, and sing along with it. Users can record their personal performances and send them to their friends, Fox Interactive Media said.

Newroo, based in San Francisco, was started in 2002 by Brown University students Daniel Gould and Brian Norgard, Fox said. Their site is designed to help create websites by aggregating and remixing content such as news and online log entries from other sites.

Both operations will relocate to Los Angeles, News Corp. said.