The Independent Television Commission has this afternoon decided to allow ITV to go ahead with its evening schedule shake-up. The biggest repercussion of these changes is that the Network’s flagship news programme, News At Ten, will be axed and replaced with two shorter bulletins, one at 6:30pm and one at 11:00pm.
The Commission met this afternoon to discuss the matter and was faced with an awkward position: oppose the move and suffer the censure of the ITV companies or allow the move and risk a critical reaction from television viewers – the very people it is obliged to protect. The watchdog has decided to permit ITV to go ahead under a number of conditions and with a review of the situation after twelve months.
The news will please a lot of the UK’s biggest advertisers which had rallied behind ITV saying the changes would allow more advertising in peak-time which, in turn, would allow ITV to be more competitive in the expanding television marketplace.
The Commission faced significant political pressure, however, from the Government’s Select Committee for Culture, Media & Sport (see Select Committee Opposes News At Ten Move). This puts the ITC in a difficult position as it is a Government-appointed quango.
ITC chairman, Sir Robin Biggam, this afternoon said: “This was a complex issue which raised significant concerns for the Commission and generated a strong public debate. News At Ten has been a cornerstone of the ITV schedule for more than 30 years and exemplifies the best in news coverage on British television. Viewers express a strong attachment to it, stronger than their propensity to view it regularly.
“But the ITC recognises the competitive challenges ITV face. If the new flexibility which the Network will now have is able to arrest its audience decline without damaging its public service commitments, it should have the chance to prove it.”
The changes to the evening schedule will be allowed to go ahead on the condition that there is no diminution in the funding, or in the range and quality of national and international news. ITV must also schedule a regular headline service in the nearest break to 10pm on weekday evenings.”
Each ITV company must accept all of the ITC’s conditions before any changes will be allowed to go ahead. The Commission has laid down its requirements in the following areas: diversity, quality of news programmes and regionality.
ITV says that it the conditions appear reasonable and that it is confident it will meet them. Chief executive, Richard Eyre, said: “The new schedule, which will begin next year, is an exciting and far-reaching overhaul of ITV’s prime-time.”
Independent Television Commission: 0171 255 3000 ITV Network Centre: 0171 843 8000
