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Maggie Brown: freelance journalist

I'M NOT sure how many Media Week readers were among the 3.4 million listeners who tuned into Radio 4's reading of Harry Potter on Boxing Day. But despite the air of experiment, the BBC was staking out more territory.

It provides a good illustration of Worldwide's confidence: forays into new magazines last year, audio books this year, now that advertising is sticky.

One Word is a commercial digital radio station specialising in unabridged readings. Chivers had a 33% share stake in One Word. But never mind, the shares are passing up the line to its master investor, Certitech.

One of the new BBC digital radio services awaiting approval promises book readings and children's speech radio, much like One Word, which alleges its format has been copied.

The Chivers takeover demonstrates how BBC Worldwide's superior financial power can boomerang upon fledgling commercial ventures. This issue concerns all media players, from magazine companies to new media ventures and TalkSport.

This week sees the publication of the board of governors' much leaked review of Worldwide's strategic direction. The review confirms it will not be broken up or sold off through a sale of 49%. At most, investors will be invited in with joint ventures. So, business as usual.

Yet Gavyn Davies' panel report in 1999 on the future funding of the BBC recommended a sell-off, to force commercial disciplines upon it. Instead, Davies is now vice-chairman of the BBC, hoping for Bland's job.

BBC Worldwide handles all those hot BBC brands, follow-on merchandising and publishing deals. Radio Times promotes BBC programmes, while acting as the consumers' champion.

You could argue that specialist franchise-holders would exploit BBC brands better, but it's fun worrying about The Tweenies stage version and Walking with Dinosaurs visitor rides. The Weakest Link's overseas deals come with a BBC executive producer.

BBC Worldwide will continue as a hybrid cuckoo - commercial yet continually deferring to bigger BBC goals. Its valuation, at around £1.5bn, is not that high, partly because it continues to shoulder loss-making ventures, such as BBC World, all part of the BBC's grander vision.

Without external shareholders to report to, Worldwide plays to its own rules, for all the fair trading rules and Office of Fair Trading scrutiny. It can use profits from one part of the business, say UK Gold, to shore up another without a blush.

Approach this unpredictable beast with care.