ITV partners, Carlton and Granada, are believed to be be planning to persuade the Government to allow them to take control of ITN, as they move closer to their £2.6bn merger (see Carlton/Granada Move Closer To £2.6bn Single ITV Company).
The existing ownership regulations are due to be relaxed in the forthcoming Communications Bill, but Carlton and Granada will still be prevented from increasing their existing 20% stake in ITN following their merger.
According to a report in today’s Times newspaper, the ITV partners are keen to see the ownership restrictions lifted and are attempting to persuade the Government to allow them to take full control of the independent news operation, which is owned by Carlton, Granada, United Business Media (UBM), Daily Mail & General Trust (DMGT) and Reuters.
Speculation suggests that UBM and DMGT would be the most likely to sell their stakes in the company and executives at Carlton and Granada are thought to be keen to gain control of ITN in order to save it from further budget cuts.
Last year a consortium including BSkyB, Chrysalis and Ulster TV was cleared by the ITC to bid against ITN for the lucrative ITV news contract. The consortium lost the bid, but ITN was reportedly forced to cut the annual cost of its contract from £45 million to £35 million, in order to clinch the deal.
Carlton and Granada fear that ITN could be forced to cut costs further, when the news contract next comes up for renewal, and are thought to be concerned that this may damage the quality of ITN news.
It has also been reported that Carlton and Granada are poised to submit their arguments in favour of a proposed single ITV to the Office of Fair Trading (see Carlton And Granada To Appeal To Regulators Over Merger). Speculation suggests that the ITV partners are aiming to submit merger terms to the OFT by the end of the month, before they publish their annual results.
