TV Market Round-Up – February 2003

February was a relatively disappointing month for the UK terrestrial TV market, which saw revenue fall by 3.2% year on year. As usual it was the big hitters which bore the brunt of the bad news, with ITV experiencing a 5.6% year on year decline in revenue and Channel 4 slipping by 4.1% during the same period. At the other end of the scale, Channel Five continued its strong performance, with revenue increasing year on year. GMTV also managed a slight improvement, with revenue inching up by 1.9%.

Total satellite revenue increased year on year during February to over the £41 million mark.

ITV Franchise Revenue

February was a month of mixed fortunes for the ITV franchises. Anglia and Central saw the most significant improvement in their share of ITV’s total revenue. Meanwhile, Carlton led the downward movement with its share declining year on year to just below 16%. North West/Border also performed poorly, recording a 0.57% points dip during February.

Costs Per Thousand

ITV and Channel 4 saw costs per thousand fall across the board during February. ITV experienced the most significant downward movement in the Housewives With Children category and the ABC1 Adults category. Channel 4 also saw a notable decline in the ABC1 Adults category, which was down year on year during February. In contrast, Channel Five saw costs per thousand increase across all categories.

Commercial Impacts

Commercial impacts rose across all categories for all broadcasters during February, with the exception of Channel 4’s Men category, which was down year on year. Among the terrestrial broadcasters, the most notable increases were seen in ITV’s Housewives With Children category and Channel 4’s ABC1 Adults category. Channel Five saw the most significant increase in its Housewives category.

Satellite impacts were up by 18.3% year on year in the Women category and 18.1% in the Adults category.

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