BBC Magazines Makes Global Plans

BBC Magazines is to create a new “Key Customer Group” to work alongside its existing sales teams and offer a “one stop shop” service for advertisers interested in cross media deals, as part of plans to extend its market reach.

The creation of the new team will form part of plans to extend the group’s brands into global markets. BBC Magazines managing director Peter Phippen is to take on responsibility for the push beyond the UK market, which has already seen Top Gear go on sale in Arabic markets, while a German version of Top of the Pops is on its way.

An advertising director is being sought to lead the Key Customer Group team.

BBC Magazines had a mixed set of results in the latest ABC release, for July-December 2001 (see ABC: Men’s Market Totters; CosmoGirl! Makes 170,000 Debut). Titles such as BBC Good Food and Gardens Illustrated saw year on year increases, up 7% to 322,614 and 4% to 32,120 respectively, but many childrens’ titles suffered, including the UK Top of the Pops, down 19.6% to 245,423 and Live & Kicking, whose closure was announced this week (see BBC’s Live & Kicking Gives Up The Fight) after a year on year drop of 41.7% in circulation.

BBC Worldwide: 0208 433 2000 www.beeb.com

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