BBC to Launch Site for U.S.

Beeb rebrands U.S. edition, plans to launch travel section this summer

A launch worth noting: The BBC announced on Thursday the rollout of a U.S. edition of its Web site and plans to ramp up Stateside sports and travel coverage.

The launch was planned for Thursday, but as of early afternoon BBC.com was still redirecting to BBC.co.uk.

The U.S. edition will be staffed by a new team of online journalists based in the BBC’s Washington, D.C., bureau.

Luke Bradley-Jones, the BBC’s global executive VP and managing director of BBC.com, called the U.S. “a key market for the BBC.”

The BBC also announced plans for a travel section – and a partnership with sister company Lonely Planet.  That launch, scheduled for later this summer, will be led by former NYTimes.com travel and style editor David G. Allan.

The main BBC site gets more than 16 million unique visitors per month, according to comScore Media Metrix.

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