Hundreds of hours of ITV shows are being added to YouTube, with the broadcaster’s commercial team bolstering its sales capabilities for the video-sharing site.
ITV’s commercial team will sell advertising opportunities around ITV and ITV Studios channels on YouTube in the U.K. The new digital operation Zoo 55 will manage the YouTube presence for ITV and ITV Studios. Channel 4 alum Abul Noor is joining ITV to lead the YouTube sales team within ITV Commercial.
Content on the site will include I’m a Celebrity, The Masked Singer, An Audience With Kylie, Olivia Marries Her Match, Ferne McCann: My Family & Me, Bullseye, You Bet! and more. The lineup will include genre-based channels such as ITV News and ITV Sport, plus show-specific channels. Beyond full episodes, there will be clips, compilations and fan content around its key brands, tailored for the YouTube audience.
Kevin Lygo, managing director for ITV Media and Entertainment, noted: “This partnership is part of our continuing strategic approach to maximize reach and viewing opportunities for audiences, wherever they choose to watch, alongside the successful and thriving ITVX, and our market-leading commercial TV channels.”
Kelly Williams, managing director of ITV Commercial, added: “Working with YouTube provides our advertisers with even more ways to engage with audiences in premium brand-safe content from the nation’s best-loved TV shows, with a wide selection of targeting options. ITV Commercial’s sales team will be selling the inventory around all our YouTube content, and working alongside ITV Studios and Zoo 55, we will be creating opportunities for clients across a wide span of genres and programs beyond ITV’s commissioned long-form content. I’m also delighted to welcome Abul Noor to our team to spearhead this important development in our digital commercial strategy.”
Alison Lomax, managing director for YouTube UK and Ireland, noted: “ITV is one of the U.K.’s most beloved TV broadcasters and is home to a hugely diverse range of content, from I’m a Celebrity to Bullseye. So, we are thrilled to be strengthening our partnership, which will see hundreds of hours of programs available on YouTube for the first time. Through full episodes, clips, compilations and brand-new fan content, audiences will be able to forge even deeper connections with the shows they love.”
