The company put the increase down to growth in its news and information division, and acquisitions of the Wireless Group and Australian Regional Media. It said this was "partially offset by lower print advertising revenues".
Adjusted revenue, which excludes the impact of foreign currency and acquisitions, was up 3% year on year. The report added that income loss was break-even compared with $128m in the previous year.
The Times and the Sunday Times secured an extra 9,000 subscribers year on year reaching 185,000. The Sun hit 80 million global monthly unique users over the first quarter of the year, up from 36 million in the same period in 2016.
News Corp chief executive Robert Thomson said: "At news and information services, while print advertising remains volatile, we saw some moderation this quarter.
"Overall, the segment was a source of growth this quarter – in both revenues and profitability – driven by, in particular, the robust performance of in-store product at News America Marketing, digital subscriber gains of more than 300,000 at The Wall Street Journal and the benefits of ongoing cost control.
"The quarter was also characterized by an intensifying social and commercial debate over the dysfunctionality of the digital duopoly, and the lack of transparency in audience and advertising metrics.
"With brands in search of authenticated audiences and trusted advertising environments, we firmly believe that our mastheads offer veracity and value, and we are rapidly developing a new digital ad platform to offer clearly defined demographics from across our range of prestigious properties."
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