Posted March 4, 200916 yr Source: BBC news Troubled ITV cuts jobs and costs Emmerdale actor on ITV cuts ITV has announced it is cutting 600 jobs across its businesses, and plans to make other "significant" savings. The announcement came as ITV reported a loss of £2.7bn for 2008 after a huge write-down in the value of its assets. About 150 of the jobs will be lost in Leeds, while several hundred are expected to go in London. ITV, which has been hit by a sharp drop in advertising revenue, also said it planned to sell the social networking site Friends Reunited. In Leeds, ITV is closing its Kirkstall Road studio, which makes programmes such as Heartbeat and The Royal. Emmerdale will continue to be filmed in Yorkshire. However, Emmerdale actor Chris Chittell said the cutbacks were a "dreadful state of affairs". A large percentage of the job cuts in London will be "back office" jobs, according to the BBC's media correspondent, Torin Douglas. 'Challenging conditions' Excluding the write-down in the value of its broadcasting and online assets, Britain's biggest commercial broadcaster reported a profit of £167m, down 41% on 2007. A large part of ITV's planned savings will come through cuts to its £1bn programme budget. It will be reduced by £65m this year. Chairman Michael Grade said: "Current conditions in the advertising market are the most challenging I have experienced in over 30 years in UK broadcasting." ITV's advertising revenue has fallen in the current economic downturn. The company estimates its net advertising revenue for the first quarter of 2009 will be down by about 17% on the same period last year. Union anger ITV's cost-cutting measures include: 600 jobs to go across its businesses Annual savings of £155m in 2009, rising to £245m in 2011. That includes plans to reduce spending on programme-making by £65m in 2009, and by a further £70m in 2011 Plans to sell Friends Reunited. ITV bought the social networking site for £120m in December 2005. It is now valued at about £40m Plans to sell its online business directory Scoot Closure of ITV Local broadband service, which provides local news content, as a standalone business Considering options for its SDN business, which leases space on Freeview. ITV says Coronation Street continues to attract large audiences Gerry Morrissey, general secretary of broadcasting union Bectu, rebutted ITV's claims that the cutbacks were as a result of the economic downturn. "This is because of the mismanagement of ITV and has been going on for longer than the current credit crunch," he said. He claimed that the group's management had been more interested in looking after shareholders and senior management, rather than staff and viewers. He also accused ITV of giving up on its public service broadcasting remit after the broadcaster said it was going to move more towards popular entertainment programmes. Uncertain trading The broadcaster said that the targets it had set in 2007 were "no longer appropriate". The targets had assumed growth in UK television advertising, but there had since been an "unprecedented deterioration in the global economic outlook", the broadcaster said. But the BBC's media correspondent Torin Douglas said the rise in online advertising had also been a factor. "The internet has broken the traditional TV advertising model," he said. ITV now plans to deliver annual savings of £155m in 2009, rising to £245m in 2011. However, Mr Grade insisted that ITV's targeted audience share would remain unchanged. In 2008, ITV1 achieved an audience share of 17.2%, down from 17.9% in 2007. ITV's digital channels accounted for 4.8% of total viewing share last year. ITV said it was difficult to predict its future revenues and warned that trading in 2009 remained uncertain. The broadcaster said it would not pay a dividend in 2009. All this after the problems Channel 4 are having - could Channel 5 win out in the end? :lol:
March 4, 200916 yr Plans to sell Friends Reunited. ITV bought the social networking site for £120m in December 2005. It is now valued at about £40m yea, and maybe only worth a fraction of that.
March 4, 200916 yr Why don't they just get rid of Britains got the X Factor. They'd do us all a favour by not boring the viewers to death by airing it and also stopping tripe enter the charts. Harry Hill TV burp is the only show I watch on ITV.
March 4, 200916 yr Author Why don't they just get rid of Britains got the X Factor. They'd do us all a favour by not boring the viewers to death by airing it and also stopping tripe enter the charts. I expect that X Factaa and BGT are two of the few programmes that actually make money, unfortunately!
March 4, 200916 yr I'll bet that Simon Cowell's salary is more than compensating for any money actually made by ITV from those programs. Sadly, a lot of the revenue that ITV gets from advertising is just going to keep falling away from television over the next few years as companies target people via the internet.
March 4, 200916 yr I don't think commercial channels have done themselves any favours though. They have continually lobbied to be allowed longer commercial breaks but I would have thought that longer breaks will have led to more people leaving the room and doing something else while the ads are on. Even if they stay in the room they are more likely to use the mute button for a 4 1/2 minute break rather than a two minute one. I'll regularly use the break to check out a song on youtube for instance.
March 4, 200916 yr I don't think commercial channels have done themselves any favours though. They have continually lobbied to be allowed longer commercial breaks but I would have thought that longer breaks will have led to more people leaving the room and doing something else while the ads are on. Even if they stay in the room they are more likely to use the mute button for a 4 1/2 minute break rather than a two minute one. I'll regularly use the break to check out a song on youtube for instance. This is true, but also probably the reason the volume during ad breaks is higher than for general programming so that if you leave the room you could still hear it. Though this is very annoying when I stay round my Nan's house as she already has the TV on full blast anyway. :P
March 4, 200916 yr hmmm how about reducing the ridiculous numbers of episodes of Corrie and Emmerdale a week. Fewer episodes, should raise the quality in theory.
March 4, 200916 yr Surely part of the problem is that ITV and BBC have been overpaying their stars for too long. There is no justification for paying Ant & Dec , Simon Cowell & Jonathon Ross these megabucks salaries. If they threaten to leave, let them, I mean where are they going to go, Watch or Living chanel,lol. Advertising has dropped, but will pick up again once the recession is over. They should reduce the number of episodes shown for Coronation Street, Eastenders,Emerdale etc. Wall to wall soaps is the lowest denomination of TV in my opinion. They should also reduce the huge salaries and bonuses for the TV executives that run the stations, they don't deserve them for call the crap they dish up.
March 5, 200916 yr Surely part of the problem is that ITV and BBC have been overpaying their stars for too long. There is no justification for paying Ant & Dec , Simon Cowell & Jonathon Ross these megabucks salaries. If they threaten to leave, let them, I mean where are they going to go, Watch or Living chanel,lol. Advertising has dropped, but will pick up again once the recession is over. They should reduce the number of episodes shown for Coronation Street, Eastenders,Emerdale etc. Wall to wall soaps is the lowest denomination of TV in my opinion. They should also reduce the huge salaries and bonuses for the TV executives that run the stations, they don't deserve them for call the crap they dish up. oh i dunno bri .... soaps in moderation do have there place, brain dead entertainment after a busy day is relaxing.
March 5, 200916 yr The big problem is that ITV doesn't actually show anything decent or tbf watchable. If you could think of the worst idea possible idea for a tv show, it's on ITV. The trashiest is already on Channel 4 and the documentaries following the thought process behind them is on Channel 5.
March 5, 200916 yr How about make an X Factor weekly show, bit like Top of The Pops? Edited March 5, 200916 yr by funmaker11
March 5, 200916 yr I used to always watch the ads and even enjoy watching some of them. I remember some of the classic ads better than programmes. However, the longer ad breaks, especially at a ridiculous volume compared with the programme, are a turn off for me. To be honest, I am guilty of channel surfing during longer ad breaks and mostly I end up watching another programme instead. I can catch up with all the news on the red button from Sky and the ads are still on when I flick back.
March 5, 200916 yr How about make an X Factor weekly show, bit like Top of The Pops? That would definitely make me voluntarily unsubscribe from ITV. IMHO there are far too many repeats and spin offs of the Saturday night reality shows as it is. Just now, the schedules of all the ITV channels are packed with Dancing on Ice and Dancing on Ice - Results. Edited March 5, 200916 yr by Baytree
March 5, 200916 yr Its bad enough having two commercial breaks in a half hour show, when there is only 3 minutes left of the show to be transmitted.
March 5, 200916 yr That would definitely make me voluntarily unsubscribe from ITV. Why, they can make more money by this, y'know?
March 5, 200916 yr Well ITV p*ssed off all the sports fans by cutting to adverts in some regions during the Everton/Liverpool game, leading to some people mising the late winning Everton goal! :lol: I always love it when they break for news in the middle of a film. "My Mama always said, 'Life was like a box of chocolates.." "... and Forest Gump returns after the Ten 'O Clock news with Trevor MacDonald" :D
March 5, 200916 yr It can sod off for all I care. The BBC is the only channel worth watching really. Although C4 has a couple of shows I happily watch....
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