Channel 4 has increased its programming budget for the coming year by an additional £9 million to £439 million, the highest annual budget in the channel’s history.
Announcing the new budget, chief executive Mark Thompson says that whilst the advertising market remains uncertain, it is vitally important to continue to invest money on-screen in order to increase the station’s share of 2003 ad revenues.
The increased investment follows a turbulent time at Channel 4, with 200 job losses made last year due to dwindling ad revenues and falling profits. The channel also axed 45 jobs from its commercial arm, 4 Ventures, as part of a major restructure of the company’s senior management team.
These cost cutting measures returned the station to profit in 2002, following the biggest restructure in its 20 year history (see Channel 4 Returns To Profit After Heavy Losses).
The IPA’s first quarter Trends In Television report shows that Channel 4 has seen its share of viewing drop to 9.2%, down from 10.1% in the same period the previous year (see Non-Terrestrial Viewing Hits Record 22.8% In Q1, Finds IPA). Many analysts have attributed this drop to the increasing popularity of multi-channel television.
