MGETIF 2005: Edinburgh Gives ITV Advice For Its Birthday
ITV was wished a happy 50th birthday at the Edinburgh International TV Conference last weekend, although the broadcaster was also given the gift of critical insight by media heavyweights discussing its future.
Lorraine Heggessey, CEO of Talkback Thames stated that, amongst other problems, there is a “samey-ness” to much of ITV’s current programming, with “title after title after title – a whole load of programmes with celebrity in them, and they begin to feel too similar.”
The Talkback boss went on to claim the broadcaster needs to broaden its offering, as “entertainment is the most difficult genre to get right, and ITV relies heavily on it.”
However, Heggessey was understanding of ITV’s predicament, with new shows often having no where to prove themselves, before being thrust on to the main stage of ITV1.
“At the BBC we had BBC2 to try things out elsewhere,” she explained. “But ITV only has ITV1. There must be somewhere to experiment and nurture things out of the glare of primetime.”
Asked of the solution to ITV’s current problems, Simon Shaps, chief executive of Granada was somewhat dismissive, stating: “I genuinely believe that we have some of the best talent making some of the best programmes. We watched the tapes of Celebrity Wrestling and I don’t think anyone expected the reception it got – I think it was judged, largely, sight unseen.”
The programme maker also blamed media coverage of ITV’s output for, at least in part, delivering unfair criticism, stating: “Across the broad range of ITV programmes there are some fantastic pieces of television. Perception of ITV often myopically focuses on just one or two shows, and that’s the wrong focus.”
Anthony Fry, head of UK Investment Banking at Lehman Brothers also downplayed the broadcaster’s woes, stating that with a few good programmes the panel could be having a “different conversation” in six months’ time.
“There are a number of brands facing the same problem,” he explained. “Marks and Spencer, even the Conservative party – do you try to please your existing audience or try to attract a new one.”
Stuart Prebble, managing director of Liberty Bell broadened the debate, stating that ITV’s digital strategy needed to address issues of viewer “cannibalisation”, with each station offering a different programme offering, rather than “simply exporting eyeballs away from the main channel to another with advertising at a discount.”
Anthony Fry supported the argument, stating: “You have to have a range of platforms, but they have to do their own things rather than supplementing the main channel.”
However, Simon Shaps defended the broadcaster’s current channel portfolio, stating that, while there is “no debate” over whether ITV should have a multi-channel strategy, “ITV2, ITV3 and ITV4 are not chasing ITV1 – they are designed to appeal to different audiences at different times.”
“The test of the strategy,” he said, “will be to have four or five channels which appeal to pretty broad audiences, not niche interest groups.”
Turning their attention to the future of ITV, the panel were generally optimistic, although Fry downplayed speculation of an imminent purchase of ITV. “I don’t think anyone will buy it,” he said. “They’re more likely to invest in new media than spend the thick end of $12 million on ITV.”
Elsewhere Simon Shaps was vocal on the broadcaster’s ability to survive the onslaught of new technology, stating: “I don’t buy the idea that the PVR means the end of the 30-second spot. The chance to re-think the structure of advertising is an opportunity for ITV, not a threat and I think Ofcom will have to look at product placement, but we’ll have to wait and see.”
Edinburgh International TV Festival: www.mgeitf.co.uk ITV: 020 7843 8000 www.itv.com