BBC launches new company for content creation

LONDON - The BBC has officially launched a new company named BBC Studios heralding what it called "a new chapter" for the its content creation.

The newly created BBC Studios, the merger of BBC Worldwide and the old BBC Studios, brings the BBC Group into line with the rest of the industry to ensure the creative and commercial success of the organization in face of increasing competition for viewers, according to a statement on Wednesday.

The new BBC Studios, officially launched on Tuesday, will see content through the full life cycle of development, commissioning, production and co-production, sales and distribution and will underpin the creation of new BBC-owned intellectual property, said the statement.

Following last month's announcement to set up a production office in Sydney, Australia, BBC Studios is developing new production opportunities in Beijing, China. The move follows a series of BBC productions such as "The Blue Planet II" which went viral in China last year.

Award-winning executive producer Matthew Springford, who has over 20 years' experience in factual program-making, will be based at the BBC office in Beijing alongside the BBC Studios' distribution team and will be working with Chinese TV stations and digital platforms to co-develop and co-produce original content and new formats across all factual genres.

Leading a staff of around 3,000 and overseeing an annual turnover of 1.4 billion pounds ($1.96 billion), CEO Tim Davie said: "BBC Studios has what it takes to create and export quality British programs in this new age of content."