ITV

A question for everyone:

Do you prefer the original, charming, imaginative and characteristic ITV names and identities, strongly linked to their region and with a notion of serving their local community....

or

do you buy into the bull about ITV needing to have a single, bland, corporate identity, removing all imagination and freedom regarding the regions?

I think it's obvious how I feel about this and as there's no poll on this I'm curious as to how everyone else feels, so could you all keep a poll running here, eg;

Regions 1
ITV 0

Thanx.

I think the regions are part of the charm of ITV. Without the regions, ITV wouldn't be anything.

However, it seems ITV is struggling to bring together one single brand or identity which is what it needs. They shouldn't change the regional names, just bring them together somehow.

Regions 2
ITV 0

Yeah same here, the guys at Carlton have got it right, they have mixed their own imaginitive branding with the ITV brand.

The other companies should bring in their own branding and add the ITV logo at the bottom.

Exactly - there should be a fixed theme or layout throughout the network.

Another problem I have with ITV in terms of presentation is lack of standardisation. Take for example fonts - the fonts are different whether you watch a promo, the news, the weather (now the weather is a complete presentation cock-up!)

I wish someone came up with a set presentation standard and applied it to the ITV Network, whether it is sport, weather, news.

Do I make sense or am I rambling?

ITV need something, anything!

They're not that bad, are they? Actually, come to think of it...

Some decent programmes would be nice.
Something that isn't reality TV, a soap or a naff quiz show.

As for the idents, I would be happier if all regions took the UTV/STV/Grampian approach, and banished ITV from all existance.
Why should a generic feel be used? The regions were different, the presentations were different - that's how it always used to be, and some of the best idents ever were local ITV ones. Now, we have one terrible one (hearts) and one pretty good one (Carlton), but why call all the regions Carlton. Might just as well call them ITV.

Now where did Anglia put that flag?

Bring back CENTRAL and make ITV regional again!

I wonder what would happen if we told ITV that they couldn't schedule these programme genres for a whole month?

Would they implode under the stress?

A football and This Morning themed week?
Ross Kemp and Sarah Lancashire in a comedy drama where they allow a camera crew into their house to film their activity, with hilarious consequences?
The first 4 episodes of a brilliant American drama show, with the other 18 shown 8 months later at 2am?
The posibilities really are endless.

Hang on, you're forgetting a series of documentaries expoloring the comedy genius of Britain's best loved actors - the 'Carry On' stars

I'm not bothered whether ITV stays as a group of excellent regional identities or goes into being the *free* version of BBC1, just as long as it isn't controlled by CARLTON!
Being an avid H&A fan I was disgusted with their treatment of it, and think CARLTON should be kicked out of ITV - OK maybe not that extreme, just taken over by Granada - the superior company by far!