BBC buys travel guide publisher Lonely Planet

1 October 2007
LONDON (Thomson Financial) – BBC Worldwide, the commercial arm of the British Broadcasting Corporation, has bought the privately held Lonely Planet travel information group for an undisclosed sum.
The business is being sold by founders Tony and Maureen Wheeler, who will retain a 25 pct stake, and John Singleton who became a shareholder in 1999.
BBC Worldwide chief executive John Smith said: ‘This deal fits well with our strategy to create one of the world’s leading content businesses, to grow our portfolio of content brands online and to increase our operations in Australia and America.’
Lonely Planet, which has significant operations in the UK, California and Australia, is led by Judy Slatyer and her management team, who will be staying with the business, and its headquarters will remain in Melbourne, Australia, the BBC said in a statement.
Lonely Planet publishes around 500 titles including specialist activity guides, shoestring guides and phrasebooks. It also has a television series produced for the Discovery Networks and a website and travel video site.
kathy.sandler@thomson.com