BBC: No Worldwide float
THE BBC last night moved to deny claims that it was planning to sell off its controversial commercial arm BBC Worldwide.
Worldwide is under the spotlight amid accusations that it is using its financial clout to give it an unfair advantage over rivals.
And the BBC’s own Trust ordered it to be reined in, in a hard-hitting report yesterday.
Further acquisitions like the one that saw the company buy travel guide company Lonely Planet for £89m in 2007 will be ruled out. It will also be forced to offload stakes in non-BBC branded international channels such as Animal Planet
But the BBC said in a statement: “There are no plans for the sale of BBC Worldwide either in whole or in part and we are not engaging any investment bank in this matter.”
The BBC also said it has no intention of charging for online news.