Foreigners queue for BBC worldwide

THE BBC is set to invite some of the world's largest media groups to bid for its Worldwide division, it emerged today.

America's Time Warner and Walt Disne, and Germany's Bertelsmann have been invited to discuss possible bids for the corporation's commercial sales and publishing arm.

It is believed that the division, which includes BBC America, could be worth up to £2bn.

The revelation comes as director-general Mark Thompson warned that the BBC will undergo a radical shake-up which could result in huge job losses.

In his first newspaper interview in the role, Thompson said that the corporation required change with great 'urgency'. He said that this would include moving significant BBC services and channels out of London.

The former chief executive of Channel 4, where he presided over the departure of almost a third of staff, said: 'To me the urgency and the need for change is every bit as great today here as it was when I arrived at Channel 4.'

Thompson said he is looking for improvements in how the corporation handles its £3bn annual income, announcing an urgent investigation by accountancy firm Ernst & Young.

He said: 'I told the governors I thought they had to think - and the whole organisation needed to think - pretty profoundly about change.

'And although the BBC had done a pretty good job under John and Greg [former director-generals John Birt and Greg Dyke] in getting into the digital world, actually the BBC will have to change more over the next decade than the last decade.'

He added that the licence fee could remain in place until 2020 if the BBC implements the changes he wants.