First quarter lift for ITV

BROADCASTER ITV, which has a large production base in Salford, has reported a 2% lift in first quarter revenues.

It said this was down to a 3% increase in revenue from its broadcast and online operations to £480m.

The group has reported a 2% rise in non-advertising revenue and a 14% lift in income from online, pay and interactive.

The ITV Studios arm, which makes shows such as Coronation Street and Jeremy Kyle at Salford Quays, was down 4%, but ITV said this was down to the timing of programme delivery. Asvertising revenue in the second half is forecast to be up 12-13%, helped by the World Cup next month.

Chief executive Adam Crozier said: “We continue to make progress with our strategy of growing and rebalancing the business in the UK and internationally.

“Broadcast & Online started the year well, helped by another strong performance in Online, Pay & Interactive and by the ongoing improvement in the UK advertising market, with most sectors showing good growth.

“While ITV Family share of viewing has been lower than expected so far this year we have confidence in our strong schedule to come, including the Football World Cup in June. ITV Encore – our first pay channel – is on track to launch in June, followed later in the year by ITVBe, our first new Free To Air Channel in almost a decade.”