ITV - Cutbacks & Proposed merger

Let be honest you could get away with getting rid of ITV4 and M& M
Split the programmes on itv4 Between ITV 3 and 2 which can be done.

saying that I would say CITV would get the boat! and ITV just moving some crap cartoons to ITV1/stv for 2 years at the weekend!

I can;t see This morning going, althourgh there may cut it down to 90mins. Losses woman will there is a chance but I hope lunchtime news goes back to 12.30

Translation:

"I would suggest that the programmes on ITV4 and M&M could be broadcast on ITV2/ITV3 with a slight change to their current remit. ITV4/M&M could then close, together with CITV.

I can't foresee the demise of 'This Morning' or 'Loose Women', although I would like to see the lunchtime news return to a 12:30 slot"

and it seem that Corrie AND Emmerdale has stop filming while the job cut get underway!

You may not like it - I may not like it, but what exactly do you think Ofcom can do to improve the situation, beyond creating a position for the incumbent franchise holder to continue?

There's no offer on the table from anyone else, as far as I see.

More speculation -

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-1159026/ITV-financial-crisis-mean-summer-rest-This-Morning.html

Flagship daytime show This Morning is set to be taken off air this summer in a desperate bid to save money.

It is understood the broadcaster will fill the two-hour slot between 10.30am and 12.30pm with repeats of classic drama.

Cuts will hit new dramas and entertainment shows as well. ITV is also expected to axe a further 750 jobs today.

Existing series will be dramatically scaled back as bosses try to cut budgets by at least 30 per cent and make an estimated £300million in savings across the board.

There are also claims it could ditch a digital channel, either ITV4 or CiTV, and replaced it with a delayed broadcast of ITV1.

The broadcaster is also set to close its Yorkshire studios, which will see Countdown moved to Manchester from Leeds

Who cares if This Morning is taken off air this summer, that what happen for the first 15 years of its life and we all got on.

but then someone through hay lets keep it on with other people!

I thought This Morning only ran "best of" shows in the summer anyway.


Well, that would be CITV then. They'd quite happily get rid. ITV4 would seem daft - in the last 12 months it's really come into it's own (and had it's hours extended) and I'm pretty sure ITV2/3/4 are actually profitable, which makes a delayed simulcast of their unprofitable channel questionable, although I guess the nature of +1 channels makes that irrelevant.


All I see from ITV is blind panic - yes, some of the decisions that have been made have had to be made, but others don't seem to be in the companies long term interests (though of course they'd argue without them their might be no "long term").

Isn't it obvious Gavin - they can do a bit of "blue sky thinking". It's just about encouraging a bit of debate about alternative options out there - there is no interest at the moment as the option isn't there, but other media companies (mainly the big American ones) have expressed some sort of interest in the past. I think there also needs to be an evaluation of why STV and UTV consistently outperform ITV plc, despite the idea that merging the regions would make it more profitable and viable.

OK, as with most OFCOM consultations they'd probably ignore most of it and just conclude by basically asking the questions they started with, but even the debate could help ITV out somewhat. I'm sure other parties expressed an interest in being part of the ITV network would do the ITV share price no harm (although conversely, the prospect of them being stripped of the franchises may do them no favours).

In what way are Ofcom required to do *anything* to improve the situation?

ITV plc have contracts to provide a service, and even in the view of their most ardent supporters, they've been treated liberally regarding the relaxation of rules.

Despite all this, ITV are still squealing like the proverbial 'pig-in-a-poke' and I hope Ofcom don't fall for this again. In the end (post-bluff) the cat will come out of the bag and Grade will reveal some skanky old moggy that wasn't worth worrying about!

Ultimately, ITV plc are simply a commercial PSB multiple-franchise holder; their demise will not have an effect on the UK economy any more than the sad closure of countless other businesses over the last year.

I doubt those in England & Wales will be grief-stricken if '3 or 103' disappears from their EPG for a while. Would you, if it happened in Scotland?

Surely you jest...I was always sent to rehab in July & August

They managed to make good enough programmes in the nineties, on a much smaller budget. Simple, no frills programmes that were cost effective (cheap) and entertaining at the same time. They should also bring back the regions.

Have you got budget data to prove this?


You mean the premium phone scams? Do we really want those back on mainstream TV just to pay for it?


They've gone, Chie. ITV plc have already admitted they can't pay for the 'regional commitment' after the end of 2010, even in its current rather odd format. That's almost 2 years before their licences run out...

...many people get to keep things they're not entitled to because of legal loopholes...but I don't see why one should be created for ITV plc in the current climate simply to allow them to hold onto contracts they have broken.