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At an operational level the company is based around three major businesses:

  1. Broadcasting
  2. Global Content
  3. Online
  1. Broadcasting

    ITV1 is the largest commercial television channel in the UK in terms of audience share and advertising revenues. ITV’s digital channels, including ITV2, ITV3, ITV4 and Citv, generated over £200 million in advertising revenues in 2007.

    Commercial target:
    To ensure that 38.5% or more of adverts watched on UK TV in 2012 are on ITV channels.

    Objectives

    • Deliver ITV family SOCI above 38.5% in 2012
    • Invest in ITV2 to become No. 3 commercial channel for 16–34s

    Actions

    • New ITV1 2008 peak-time strategy
    • Keep programme costs in check
    • Aim to secure new ITV1 PSB settlement
    • Work to replace CRR
    • Secure greater share of marketing budgets
    • Future-proof Freeview; launch Freesat
    • Launch ITV HD service in 2008

    ITV1

    ITV1 is the UK’s leading commercial channel attracting around 18% of the total television audience. ITV1 broadcasts the most popular programmes on commercial television, including Coronation Street, Kingdom, Emmerdale, News at Ten, This Morning, I’m A Celebrity, The X Factor, Champions League football and Formula 1. ITV’s digital channels – ITV2, ITV3, ITV4, Citv and Men & Motors – generated more than £200 million in advertising revenue in 2007 and included two of the UK’s top three commercial digital channels. ITV’s £1 billion investment in programming funds original commissions from in-house, external and independent producers, plus programmes acquired from distributors and US studios, or through negotiation with sporting bodies and other rights holders.

    ITV channels

    In 2007, ITV channels generated nearly £1.5 billion in advertising revenues. As well as national advertising, ITV is uniquely able to offer companies the opportunity to advertise on television at a regional or local level. ITV also offers advertisers the opportunity to sponsor or directly fund programming consistent with regulatory rules. Programming on ITV channels also generates revenue through viewer competitions and voting delivered via PRS. ITV channels are broadcast on all the major broadcast platforms, including DTT, cable and satellite. ITV is a shareholder in Freeview and, with the BBC, plans to launch a Freesat service including a high definition ITV offering. Via SDN, ITV also holds a multiplex licence, leasing out DTT spectrum to other broadcasters. ITV holds a 75% stake in GMTV, the Channel 3 breakfast time licensee; a 40% stake in ITN, the national news provider for ITV and Channel 4; and a 5.6% interest in SMG plc, which holds the two regional Channel 3 licences in Scotland.

    ITV2
    ITV2, launched in 1998, is available free-to-air on all digital television platforms (satellite, cable and digital terrestrial). It is the UK’s top digital channel and successfully targets younger audiences that often prove hard to reach on ITV1. ITV2 continues to capture and retain a fun-loving, brand-conscious, younger audience of 16-34s with a female bias.

    ITV2’s share of viewing across 2007 in multichannel homes was 2.2%, up 11.9% on 2006.

    ITV2 was named non-terrestrial channel of the year at Broadcast magazine’s awards and at the 2007 Edinburgh International Television Festival.

    The schedule is a mix of entertainment, mainstream movies and live events. Entertainment includes original commissions such as Jack Osbourne: Adrenaline Junkie, Secret Diary Of A Call Girl (peaking with an audience of 2.2m in September 2007); exclusive acquisitions including Entourage and Hell’s Kitchen USA; and brand extensions like Britain’s Got More Talent and The Xtra Factor. ITV2 + 1 launched in 2006 for viewers to catch up on their favourite shows.

    ITV3
    ITV3 was the UK’s ninth most popular channel for 2007 with a share of viewing of 1.4% in multichannel homes in 2007

    ITV3 targets the desirable 35+ upmarket audience with programming that complements the schedules of both ITV1 and ITV2, while still having a broad appeal. Sophisticated older audiences tune in to ITV3 to enjoy quality movies and drama they may have missed on ITV1, including Inspector Morse, Poirot, Midsomer Murders, Taggart and Lewis.

    ITV4
    ITV4 is an entertainment channel made for men, with a core audience of 25-44-year-old males.

    ITV4 grew its audience share in multichannel homes by almost 25% in 2007 as high quality sporting events such as the Rugby World Cup in particular attracted large audiences to the channel.

    Citv
    Citv launched in March 2006, the first dedicated commercial children’s channel on Freeview. Launched exclusively on Freeview and cable, it is on air every day between 6am and 6pm. It is targeted towards pre school audience with favourite shows such as Pocoyo and to 4-9 year olds with award winning shows like My Parents are Aliens.

    TV Platforms

    Freeview
    Our platforms business focuses on exploiting and managing ITV’s interests in broadcasting platforms. ITV is an equal shareholder in Freeview alongside the BBC, BSkyB, Channel 4 and transmission group National Grid Wireless. A not-for-profit consortium, Freeview exists to market the free-to-air services on the UK’s digital terrestrial (DTT) platform. Our Freeview multiplex SDN – one of six multiplexes carrying digital channels on Freeview – will deliver increasing revenues as the digital terrestrial platform grows in popularity and our contracts with channel operators come up for review from 2008 onwards.

    SDN

    ITV purchased SDN in April 2005 for £136 million. This was a key acquisition in line with ITV’s growth strategy. SDN, a UK digital terrestrial television (DTT) multiplex operator, holds a licence from Ofcom to broadcast channels over specified bandwidths on Multiplex A, one of the six multiplexes on the DTT platform that is principally used by Freeview. Multiplex A presently broadcasts over 20 channels and existing customers include Five, Disney, Turner, EMAP and Teletext. SDN derives its income from content providers who would like their channels to be broadcast to the nation’s growing numbers of DTT homes. The channels are then marketed to consumers as part of the Freeview or Top Up TV services.

    ITV’s DTT holding therefore provides both a lucrative source of revenue for ITV but critically also the opportunity for future growth for ITV's family of channels on Freeview, the only platform where viewers will be able to access TV for free after digital switchover and the platform where ITV’s highly-successful family of channels performs best.

    SDN - Principles for the fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory treatment of capacity on Multiplex A

    In 2007 ITV also confirmed a joint venture with the BBC to launch a “Freesat” subscription-free digital satellite service in 2008. The new service will include free-to-air HD services from ITV
    and the BBC.

  2. Global Content

    Global Content is ITV’s content division bringing together all of ITV’s UK and international production and distribution businesses. ITV Productions is one of Europe’s leading commercial production companies producing more than 3,000 hours of original programming each year. ITV-produced programmes include some of the most popular shows on UK television, such as Coronation Street, Emmerdale, I’m a Celebrity and Dancing On Ice. ITV also produces programming for other channels such as The Street for the BBC, Brainiac for Sky and Countdown for Channel 4. ITV Productions is a significant producer across a wide range of programme  genres, including drama, soaps, entertainment, factual, daytime, arts, current affairs, quiz and game shows. ITV Worldwide consists of Granada International, Granada Ventures and international production companies in America, Germany and Australia. Granada International sells programming from ITV Productions and many other independent producers worldwide. Granada Ventures is a major distributor of DVD entertainment in the UK and exploits merchandising and licensing in the UK and worldwide from both ITV-produced programmes and other rights owners. ITV has had considerable success in producing local versions of ITV and other UK programmes, including Hell’s Kitchen in the US, Dancing On Ice in Australia, and local versions of I’m A Celebrity and Come Dine with Me in Germany. In 2007 ITV took a 25% equity holding in independent producer Mammoth, a controlling 51% stake in US production company Jaffe/Braunstein Entertainment and acquired entertainment quiz format producer 12 Yard.

    Commercial target:
    To double annual Global Content revenues by 2012, increasing ITV, other UK and international sales.

    Objectives

    • Double Global Content annual revenues by 2012
    • Compete for a greater share of ITV1 commissions

    Actions

    • NewGlobal Content division
    • Focus on high value genres
    • Development spend up by 50%
    • New talent strategy
    • International expansion
    • Targeted acquisitions
  3. ONLINE

    ITV’s online operations include itv.com, itvlocal.com, Friends Reunited, ITV’s new broadband joint venture and mobile services.  itv.com was relaunched in 2007 and offers ITV channels streamed online, plus access to further ITV programming, clips and exclusive content. itvlocal.com offers local information, news and services, mirroring the regional services offered by ITV1 onscreen. In 2007, itvlocal.com completed its roll out across all ITV regions. Both itv.com and itvlocal.com are primarily funded by online advertising. Friends Reunited is a well-established and profitable group of sites offering reunion, family history and dating services, funded by subscription, transactional and advertising revenues. The reunion site has plans during the course of 2008 to migrate towards a “social networking” model with a greater emphasis on advertiser funding.
    In 2007 ITV announced a joint venture with the BBC and Channel 4, seeking to offer online access to archive programming from the UK’s leading broadcasters. The service is due to launch during the course of 2008. Mobile consists of our dedicated mobile portal with exclusive content and news, and the team also manage agreements with 3,Orange and Vodafone to broadcasta simulcast version of ITV1 to the operators’ 3G subscribers.

    Commercial target:
    To deliver £150 million in annual Online revenues by 2010

    Objectives

    • Deliver £150 million in Online annual revenues by 2010
    • Make itv.com a top-10 UK entertainment site by 2010

    Actions

    • Increase viewing of ITV on-demand content
    • Build sites around key programme brands and communities
    • Deliver excellence in online ad sales
    • Develop new online businesses

    itv.com

    Relaunched in May 2007 itv.com received a complete functional and visual overhaul, enabling it to compete with other major entertainment sites. The basic offer is a mix of simulcast, catch-up, made for broadband and the best of our archive content alongside the usual news, sport and features content.  Now equipped with a broadband video player and a much-expanded operations and editorial team, the site offers channel simulcasts for ITV1, ITV2, ITV3 and ITV4 as well as a 30-day catch-up service and access to archive material. As a result of this new look and feel, the site has achieved substantial growth, with unique users per calendar month breaking through the 6 million barrier for November 2006.

    By 2010, we aim to grow ITV.com into a top 10 UK commercial entertainment site.

    itvlocal.com

    ITV acquired business directory specialist enable Media (currently operating as Scoot) in 2006 which gave us a foothold into the online business directory listings sector. Intended as a richer video-led, more interactive, version of a local paper, 2007 saw the completion of the full roll-out for itvlocal.com. From October, the service has been available in all ITV regions, and in December, it attracted over 750,000 unique users. itvlocal.com is modernising ITV’s delivery of regional news, expanding the viewing and reach of our regional programming online. Almost 70% of visitors are coming to itvlocal.com for local news before the main regional news programme airs on ITV1 at 6pm.itvlocal.com has over 1,000 hours of news, weather, short films, documentaries, viewer videos, and other material available to be viewed on demand by broadband viewers.

    Friends Reunited

    Our wholly owned community website, Friends Reunited, delivers scale in online ads and serves as an anchor for communities. Friends Reunited currently has 19 million registered members (2006: 17 million), whilst Genes Reunited has 7.9 million (2006: 5.8 million). One new name is added to Genes Reunited every second and a new member joins the Friends Reunited Dating site every two minutes.

    Advertising sales for the sites are now handled in-house at ITV, and Friends Reunited provides dating and jobs services for itv.com and itvlocal.com. Following our recent strategy review, there are plans in development for much greater integration with each Friends Reunited business and itv.com, including a reduced emphasis on subscription fees for some parts of the sites.