ITV Adjusts Peaktime Target For 2000

The ITV Network’s commercial director, John Hardie, has tweaked his peaktime (7:00-10:30pm) audience share targets for 2000 to take into account the rapid growth in multichannel television viewing. In a presentation to advertisers the Network said its new target is to achieve a 1% increase in real terms in ITV’s average peaktime audience share.

Originally Hardie had promised a peak share of 40% for 2000; the Network narrowly missed its 1999 target of 39% with an average peaktime viewing of 38.8% across the whole year (see ITV Peaktime Share Expected To Narrowly Miss Target). However, the fast growth in multichannel viewing, driven by free digital set-top box hardware, has caused ITV to reappraise its objectives.

The new target is calculated using projections of multichannel penetration for the coming year. Under these projections ITV’s 1999 performance would equate to a 37.4% share of peak viewing for 2000. The new target, therefore, is to achieve a share of 38.5% for 2000.

ITV also points to a 1% increase in the 16-34 age group at peaktime to 25%. The ABC1 profile held steady at 39% for peaktime viewing.

ITV chief executive Richard Eyre says: “In 1999 ITV increased its peaktime share, improved its audience profile and widened its lead over the competition. For the year 2000 we are targeting real growth in ITV viewing in every type of TV home in the country. This is a goal which reflects ITV’s continuing ambition and firm commitment to continued growth.”

ITV Network: 020 7843 8000