Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation reported a $US1.2 billion ($1.4 billion) profit in 2009 that depended on a favourable Luxembourg tax ruling, documents obtained by The Australian Financial Review show.
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The 2009 deal involved the part sale of News Corp's Israeli-based technology company NDS Group to private equity firm Permira, the AFR reports.
Documents obtained by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists' show the $US3.5 billion deal almost fell over, with Permira forced to ask for an exemption to Luxembourg's tax on speculative gains when it restructured the deal after investors got cold feet.
A cache of 28,000 leaked documents revealed accounting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers had orchestrated deals on behalf of Australian and multinational companies, including AMP, Macquarie, Lend Lease and the Australian government's Future Fund.
The group is expected to release the names of more companies later this month.
News Corp, now known as 21st Century Fox, has directed profits through Bermuda, the Cayman Islands and the British Virgin Islands, AFR reports.
In 2010, the Murdochs and News were forced to pay $77 million for tax avoidance in a scheme revealed by the AFR and Crikey.com.
