MUMBAI: The Rupert Murdoch owned media conglomerate, News Corporation has announced a significant investment in its UK publishing subsidiary News International Limited.

The company will spend in the course of the next four to five years over ?600 million on new printing plants.

News International publishes The Sun, the News of the World, The Times, The Sunday Times and the TSL Education supplements, say media reports.

The investment will enable the company to acquire state-of-the-art full-colour printing presses and build new production plants in Enfield, north of London, Glasgow, and Knowsley, close to Liverpool.

New Corp chairman and CEO Rupert Murdoch said, "News International is Britains leading national newspaper publisher, producing some of the greatest newspapers in the world. At News Corporation, we have always been a long-term investor at the forefront of technological innovation. This exciting new project demonstrates again our absolute commitment to the future of print."

News International executive chairman Les Hinton said, "This will ensure News International maintains its leading position in the national newspaper industry. The new presses will provide colour on every page bringing advantages to both advertisers and editorial. This is a long-range project taking more than four years to complete.

"Over this period inevitably there will be job changes and losses as the new automated technology comes on line. There will be no impact on jobs for at least two years and, wherever possible, reductions will be achieved through voluntary redundancy," he added.