ABCe figures released today for a clutch of BBC consumer web sites almost certainly support the view that says it’s time to cut the BBC down to size.

Top Gear, Radio Times and Good Food websites recorded ABCe figures for June 2010 reporting 108,930, 84,086 and 71,013 daily average unique browsers respectively.

These are huge figures, in relative terms, for what are special interest publications. You’d be very hard pressed to make a case that the BBC brand and television tie-ups didn’t  skew the market for consumer magazines and online sites.

According to Speed media-watcher Nick Bishop:

“The BBC’s defensive strategy appears to be to limit how much its reach is cut by demonstrating its scale. Accept they’re going to lose some battles but make sure they win most.”