Murdoch quits boards of British media interests: report

Rupert Murdoch has stepped down as director of a string of companies behind British newspapers The Sun, The Times and The Sunday Times newspapers, a report said on Saturday.

Murdoch resigned from the boards of News International Group, Times Newspaper Holdings and News Corp Investments in the last week, the Telegraph newspaper's website said, citing records held by Companies House.

The report said he had also quit a number of News Corp's US boards but that details had not yet been disclosed by the US Securities and Exchange Commission.

News Corporation played down the significance of the resignations as "nothing more than a corporate housecleaning exercise prior to the company split", The Telegraph reported.

News Corporation has already said it will split into two separately listed companies, distancing its newspaper and book publishing interests from its film and television operations.