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26th Anniversary of the biggest shake up in ITV

Formerly 25th Anniversary (December 2017)

This site closed in March 2021 and is now a read-only archive
SW
Steve Williams
tightrope78 posted:
When did Friday night athletics stop being broadcast across ITV and Channel Four? I’ve a feeling they were both sharing the coverage until about the mid 90s which meant the coverage started on ITV and then handed over to C4.


1993 was the last year of the deal, which saw ITV show the first half of a Grand Prix on a Friday night from 8pm and then C4 take over at nine.
BL
bluecortina
Neil Jones posted:
I seem to remember (though of course I do wonder sometimes whether I dream this stuff up) that the cross references to Channel 4 dropped off dramatically (but not entirely) after 1993, which is probably understandable in the scale of things. After all prior to this you're getting the ad revenue regardless of which side you're watching. After 1993? Nah, sod Channel 4, stay here on ITV.

The licence payment fees were a bit strange really when they all pledged to pay so much a year for it and then lobbied heavily to get them reduced years later, in some cases to a level below what the outgoing companies had bid in the first place (GMTV we know outbid TV-am considerably and then went cap in hand years later to get this reduced. One can only imagine what TV-am's £14m bid would have been reduced to in the circumstances).


My bold. Why wouldn't they? ITV is a business like any other and would continually try and reduce their cost base.
IN
Interceptor
bluecortina posted:
Neil Jones posted:
I seem to remember (though of course I do wonder sometimes whether I dream this stuff up) that the cross references to Channel 4 dropped off dramatically (but not entirely) after 1993, which is probably understandable in the scale of things. After all prior to this you're getting the ad revenue regardless of which side you're watching. After 1993? Nah, sod Channel 4, stay here on ITV.

The licence payment fees were a bit strange really when they all pledged to pay so much a year for it and then lobbied heavily to get them reduced years later, in some cases to a level below what the outgoing companies had bid in the first place (GMTV we know outbid TV-am considerably and then went cap in hand years later to get this reduced. One can only imagine what TV-am's £14m bid would have been reduced to in the circumstances).


My bold. Why wouldn't they? ITV is a business like any other and would continually try and reduce their cost base.

The strange bit is that the ITC didn't tell them to hand in the keys if they didn't like the payment which they had promised.
NL
Ne1L C
Good point about GMTV. I don't know what the financial situation was around the ITV network post '93 but one has to wonder that the ITC didn't/wouldn't ask them to hand over the keys for fear of beaten franchises (or constituents thereof) kicking a up a storm and demanding the franchise being reoffered.


Can you imagine Branson or Gyngell doing that Shocked
BL
bluecortina
Interceptor posted:
bluecortina posted:
Neil Jones posted:
I seem to remember (though of course I do wonder sometimes whether I dream this stuff up) that the cross references to Channel 4 dropped off dramatically (but not entirely) after 1993, which is probably understandable in the scale of things. After all prior to this you're getting the ad revenue regardless of which side you're watching. After 1993? Nah, sod Channel 4, stay here on ITV.

The licence payment fees were a bit strange really when they all pledged to pay so much a year for it and then lobbied heavily to get them reduced years later, in some cases to a level below what the outgoing companies had bid in the first place (GMTV we know outbid TV-am considerably and then went cap in hand years later to get this reduced. One can only imagine what TV-am's £14m bid would have been reduced to in the circumstances).


My bold. Why wouldn't they? ITV is a business like any other and would continually try and reduce their cost base.

The strange bit is that the ITC didn't tell them to hand in the keys if they didn't like the payment which they had promised.


They could have. But common business sense prevailed and reductions agreed. The value of the licences has reduced year on year, even now. At some point the licence holders might decide it makes business sense to continue in the future as non-psb broadcasters - the cost of the psb licences, and perceived advantages thereof, being outweighed by the cost savings of not paying for the licences and the obligations that go with them. Think how much ITVplc would save by closing all its psb news provision, we are not talking peanuts here.
NL
Ne1L C
Oh the saving would be significant but wouldn't that cause them to lose their prominent EPG positions?
MA
Markymark
Ne1L C posted:
Oh the saving would be significant but wouldn't that cause them to lose their prominent EPG positions?


Indeed, another saving would be to hand back being on PSB2 and moving ITV (1) to a COM mux, large saving in costs, vs only losing 8-10% of the population coverage. However, that too would mean losing PSB status and sliding right down all the EPGs ( not just Freeview’s)
NL
Ne1L C
Yes but with "favourite" options available on tv and various receivers plus catch-up services ahoy ITV would quite easily maintain its market share.
TT
ttt
Ne1L C posted:
Good point about GMTV. I don't know what the financial situation was around the ITV network post '93 but one has to wonder that the ITC didn't/wouldn't ask them to hand over the keys for fear of beaten franchises (or constituents thereof) kicking a up a storm and demanding the franchise being reoffered.


Can you imagine Branson or Gyngell doing that Shocked


Ironically Gyngell ended up running two franchises that probably should never have won themselves.
BL
bluecortina
Its a calculation, and one I’m sure ITV continually keep under review.
JA
JAS84
ttt posted:
Ne1L C posted:
Good point about GMTV. I don't know what the financial situation was around the ITV network post '93 but one has to wonder that the ITC didn't/wouldn't ask them to hand over the keys for fear of beaten franchises (or constituents thereof) kicking a up a storm and demanding the franchise being reoffered.


Can you imagine Branson or Gyngell doing that Shocked


Ironically Gyngell ended up running two franchises that probably should never have won themselves.
Yorkshire-Tyne Tees Television. I know Tyne Tees couldn't afford their payments, which is how Yorkshire were able to buy them out, but what was Yorkshire's problem? If they had the same problem they wouldn't have been able to buy Tyne Tees. Confused
:-(
A former member
Both had the same problems but NO one brought anyone out, it was a merger, but YTV asset strapped the company to cut costs.

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