Saturday Sitdown: Public media played key role during Covid, says STV boss May 22, 2021 The UK’s public service broadcasters played a vital role during the Covid-19 pandemic and should be protected, the chief executive of STV has said. In an interview with City A.M., Simon Pitts threw his weight behind traditional TV channels, insisting they were still relevant despite the rise of streaming heavyweights such as Netflix. “I don’t [...]
Six Nations to remain free-to-air as BBC and ITV ink new deal May 21, 2021 The Six Nations is set to remain free-to-air after the competition reached an agreement in principle to renew its broadcasting deal with the BBC and ITV. The new agreement will run for four years from 2022 until after the championships in 2025. For the men’s competition, ITV will show all of England, Ireland, Italian and [...]
FTSE 100 reshuffle: Are Royal Mail and ITV in pole position for promotion? May 19, 2021 Royal Mail and ITV look to be strong contenders for promotion to the index of the UK’s 100 biggest public companies during next month’s FTSE reshuffle. ITV, which has been boosted by the return of ad revenue, is considered a strong outsider to inch back into the top flight, according to analysis from Hargreaves Lansdown. [...]
Screenshot: Is Trump’s Facebook ban too hot to handle? May 7, 2021 This week **Media Moment of the Week: Brits love bent coppers **Is Trump’s Facebook ban too hot to handle? **ITV’s Summer of Love (Island) Media Moment of the Week: Brits love bent coppers Ok, so you might not have been the biggest fan of the Line of Duty season finale on Sunday. In fact, you [...]
ITV begins ‘cautiously optimistic’ recovery from production hit during pandemic May 5, 2021 British broadcaster ITV has begun to recover from stalled production during the pandemic, with advertising revenue rebounding 68 per cent this month. In a trading update this morning, ITV said it expected total ad revenue for the first half of the year to rise around 26 per cent compared to 2020, despite pandemic restrictions being [...]
GB News: What is the new TV channel and when will it launch? April 22, 2021 There’s been a flurry of announcements in recent weeks ahead of the launch of GB News, a new opinion-led channel promising the biggest shakeup of British broadcast media for 30 years. The venture has caused a stir, with no shortage of controversy over its promise to take a “boldly different” approach. Plans are still being [...]
ITN warns of UK ‘news desert’ without broadcasting revamp March 26, 2021 The UK could be at risk of a digital “new desert” where audiences are unable to access high-quality news online unless effective regulation is brought in by Ofcom, ITN has warned. The production giant, which produces news programmes for ITV, Channel 4 and Channel 5, warned against a situation where “significant numbers of people can [...]
Ikea and ITV invest in location tech startup what3words March 25, 2021 Ikea and ITV have both thrown their weight behind a startup that has divided the world into three-metre squares each with a unique three-word name to help pinpoint addresses. Ingka Group, the holding company behind the Swedish flat-pack giant, has pumped £12m into what3words, while ITV has taken a minority stake valued at £2m. What3words, [...]
ITV chief Carolyn McCall takes 20 per cent pandemic pay cut March 24, 2021 The chief executive of ITV took a 20 per cent pay cut to her basic salary for seven months during the Covid-19 pandemic, according to documents. Dame Carolyn McCall’s voluntary decision emerged as the broadcaster revealed the gender pay gap at the organisation grew during 2020 although its ethnic diversity pay gap shrank. The boss [...]
Screenshot: Does the UK media have a racism problem? March 12, 2021 This week: **Media Moment of the Week: GMB gets a new frontman **Does the UK media have a racism problem? **Deliveroo’s IPO giveaway; BT gets in a bind Media Moment of the Week: GMB gets a new frontman What a week it’s been for ITV. In the space of 24 hours it racked up bumper [...]