ITC Raises Questions Over ITV’s Virtual Enterprise

The ITC has asked Carlton and Granada to clarify plans to merge their sales and marketing teams after Carlton chief executive, Gerry Murphy, spoke of his plans to create a “virtual enterprise” in a recent newspaper interview (see ITV Power Brokers Team Up To Stop The Rot).

The ITC has sent letters to both companies requesting clarification on the controversial merger plans. A spokesman for the ITC told NewsLine: “This is not an investigation as such, we are seeking further details on their proposals and reminding the companies of the complex rules involved in such a move. We want to know exactly what this “virtual enterprise” will mean and are awaiting a response.”

Under current ITC rules Carlton and Granada are required to sell airtime separately to avoid monopolising the market.

This is not the first time the proposals have attracted negative attention, ISBA condemned the plans as an attempt to “merge by stealth” (see ISBA Voices Concern Over Stealth ITV Merger). They also said that any moves to collude in airtime trading would result in formal opposition by advertisers who would refer the matter to regulatory authorities.

Channel 4 lodged a complaint against Carlton and Granada with the ITC in July after Unilever negotiated a £320m advertising deal across the ITV networks. The channel believed the ground breaking deal breached the rules which prevent Carlton and Granada from acting as a single sales house (see Channel 4 Opposes ITV’s Record Ad Deal).

ITC: 020 7306 7743 www.itc.org.uk

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