Media groups continue commercial property sell-off

Following news that the BBC has sold its Television Centre in White City to a consortium of property developers, it is becoming clear that there is a trend within the media industry to dispose of valuable commercial property in the capital.

London property has defied nation-wide trends and seen increases in value over the past few years. The media industry, meanwhile, is struggling, with print companies facing particular problems. These two issues have combined to see many firms cash in on their valuable London commercial properties and move to alternative, cheaper locations.

There is the added issue that many of the large central properties are functionally obsolete. Take the huge News International site in Wapping, for example. The property was originally designed to handle huge printing presses, the likes of which are no longer needed as the whole process can be streamlined significantly and operated from much smaller premises.

A shift towards online media is also reducing the need for large central London properties. Media companies can do a more efficient job from new locations outside of the city.

Lee Elliott, head of corporate occupier research at Jones Lang LaSalle, told the Financial Times: “In addition, large development sites in London are not two a penny and it doesn't matter what industry you are in at the moment. Times are hard and if you can generate cash from selling off underutilised sites, you will.”

Share this article

Latest Businesses for Sale

View more businesses for sale