ITV Profits Impacted by Ad Market

ITV’s pre-tax profits were down by 6 percent to £800 million ($1.1 billion) in 2017, as TV advertising revenue dipped 5 percent to £1.6 billion ($2.2 billion).

Total revenues were up 4 percent year-on-year at £3.7 billion ($5.1 billion).

A 3 percent dip in revenue at the broadcasting and online business to £2.08 billion ($2.9 billion) was offset by ITV Studios, which saw revenue up by 13 percent to £1.58 billion ($2.2 billion).

Carolyn McCall, ITV’s chief executive, said: “There is no doubt that ITV’s operational performance in 2017 in a challenging environment was strong. ITV delivered a great viewing performance on-screen and online and double-digit revenue growth in video on demand advertising and ITV Studios. This gives us a solid foundation to build on for the next phase of ITV’s development.

“We are very focused on our strategic refresh. This will enable us to define a clear strategy and priorities that will highlight the opportunities and address the challenges that we face in an increasingly competitive media landscape. This project is well underway.

“We have had a great start to 2018. On-screen we have grown our viewing share and volume and online we have continued to deliver double-digit growth in viewing. We expect ITV Family NAR to be positive in the first half, with Q1 up 1 percent and growth in Q2 around the football. ITV Studios is seeing increasing demand for its formats and dramas, particularly in the U.K. and U.S., and we have over 60 percent of this year’s expected revenue already booked.”