ITV To Push For Equal Status For Online Advertising

ITV is attempting to give online advertising for the broadcaster’s entire portfolio of programmes the same status with its traditional agency partners by overhauling its digital arrangements.

According to reports in the trade press, AAR is conducting the review for the broadcaster. ITV has used a number of agencies to promote individual programmes on an ad hoc basis, and Play, the digital arm of M&C Saatchi, ITV’s above-the-line agency, will pitch as part of this review with a decision expected by October.

David Pemsel, ITV’s marketing director, said: “I am looking for our digital agency to have the same status as M&C Saatchi, MindShare and our internal agency, so we can look at whether to transfer money out of traditional media and into digital.”

According to Pemsel, the process is separate from the broadcaster’s ongoing drive to make more of its TV content available on the internet. In July, the broadcaster created a new position to help drive ITV’s online and broadband strategy, including itv.com, Friends Reunited and the launch of a full ITV broadband service next year (see ITV Appointment To Boost Online Strategy).

ITV has been pushing to expand other broadcast platforms and recently ITV1 struck an exclusive six-month deal with mobile company 3 to stream the channel live to 3.5 million mobile customers (see UK’s First Live Streamed TV On Mobile Phones Announced).

ITV: 020 7843 8000 www.itv.com