The ITV Thread

Elmo

Elmo wrote: »

might be off topic but former UTV Ireland/UTV owners have been sold to News Corp. http://www.rte.ie/news/business/2016/0630/799258-newscorp/

Yeah might be

Elmo

Corro Street going 6 episodes per week.

http://www.independent.ie/entertainment/television/tv-news/coronation-street-to-air-six-times-a-week-for-the-first-time-ever-34846276.html

political analyst

Elmo wrote: »

Corro Street going 6 episodes per week.

http://www.independent.ie/entertainment/television/tv-news/coronation-street-to-air-six-times-a-week-for-the-first-time-ever-34846276.html

Ah, seriously, isn't there more than enough soap on the ITV schedule already?!

byte

Elmo wrote: »

Corro Street going 6 episodes per week.

http://www.independent.ie/entertainment/television/tv-news/coronation-street-to-air-six-times-a-week-for-the-first-time-ever-34846276.html

LOL, just when I thought the evening TV schedules couldn't get any worse.

iseegirls

Looks like they'll prob go back to the soaps being on Sunday.

Don't see how these extra episodes help a soap. Less is more.

Delta2113

Virgin Media Ireland in advanced talks to buy Utv Ireland -about to break.

The Cush

Delta2113 wrote: »

Virgin Media Ireland in advanced talks to buy Utv Ireland -about to break.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2016/07/02/virgin-plans-lavish-new-dramas-in-challenge-to-sky/

2 July 2016 • 7:48pm

In another signal of Virgin Media’s renewed ambition in television, its Irish arm is understood to be in advanced talks to acquire UTV Ireland from ITV. Britain’s biggest commercial broadcaster is poised to offload the loss-making Republic of Ireland channel after it bought its Northern Ireland-focused parent company UTV for £100m last October.
...
The takeover of UTV Ireland would represent a consolidation, as Liberty Global already owns TV3, Ireland’s biggest commercial broadcaster. It would increase Mr Malone’s media clout in his ancestral home, where he is restoring a castle he has dubbed “the green banana”. ITV and Liberty Global declined to comment. The cable company is ITV’s biggest shareholder.

icdg

If it does happen I imagine we'll see a fairly quick closure of UTV Ireland and the restoration of the prime time ITV programmes to TV3.

Don't imagine that this means UTV NI back either - I reckon TV3 will want a non-compete clause and UTV to stop targeting adverts at ROI,

political analyst

The Cush wrote: »

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2016/07/02/virgin-plans-lavish-new-dramas-in-challenge-to-sky/

If that happens, will the broadcasting of ITV Studios programming on UTV Ireland remain?

political analyst

icdg wrote: »

If it does happen I imagine we'll see a fairly quick closure of UTV Ireland and the restoration of the prime time ITV programmes to TV3.

Don't imagine that this means UTV NI back either - I reckon TV3 will want a non-compete clause and UTV to stop targeting adverts at ROI,

Channel 4 targets the Republic audience. So why isn't ITV plc willing to do the same?

icdg

They will almost certainly, if this report is accurate, sign a deal which will tie their hands from doing so. We'll see the prime time ITV Studios programmes move to TV3, plus Jeremy Kyle. Like it was before.

If you like GMB, Lorraine, This Morning, ITV dramas etc...you'll need to buy a satellite dish.

political analyst

icdg wrote: »

They will almost certainly, if this report is accurate, sign a deal which will tie their hands from doing so. We'll see the prime time ITV Studios programmes move to TV3, plus Jeremy Kyle. Like it was before.

If you like GMB, Lorraine, This Morning, ITV dramas etc...you'll need to buy a satellite dish.

I guess that my question wasn't clear enough.

Why isn't ITV willing to do what Channel 4 does - target the Republic audience - instead of off-loading UTV Ireland?

Elmo

icdg wrote: »

They will almost certainly, if this report is accurate, sign a deal which will tie their hands from doing so. We'll see the prime time ITV Studios programmes move to TV3, plus Jeremy Kyle. Like it was before.

If you like GMB, Lorraine, This Morning, ITV dramas etc...you'll need to buy a satellite dish.

If Virgin Media buy UTV Ireland I imagine that they will retain UTV Ireland, though it will be re-branded. It's daytime schedule as ITV1, with Coro St and Emmers moving back to TV3, with repeats on UTV Ireland. The regulators would have a hard time stopping such a move, as ITV could always close UTV Ireland and sell those programmes back to TV3.

It's a pity that UTV failed so badly to utilize ITV programmes in an effective manner for UTV Ireland, they clearly had no idea what was required.

I am surprised that UTV management are still in place!

Also I am going to suggest that ITV could not get producers not to consider RoI as part of the commissioning process at dropping distributor ties in RoI. Meaning TV3 could be lining up to sign for X-Factor and BGT, without such shows UTV Ireland has nothing.

icdg

political analyst wrote: »

I guess that my question wasn't clear enough.

Why isn't ITV willing to do what Channel 4 does - target the Republic audience - instead of off-loading UTV Ireland?

For many years - and certainly during that key period of 1993-2000 - UTV quite definitely targeted the Republic audience, and saw itself nearly as the second channel of the island of Ireland as much as being the ITV franchisee for NI. Alas a number of things took it off that perch, chiefly but not exclusively the TV3-Granada deal in late 2000. (The advent of digital TV also played a key part).

But those days are gone and not coming back. ITV has clearly made a calculation that it can make more money selling its programmes to TV3 than selling advertising directly in Ireland. Maybe Brexit played a part in this change of plan, though I doubt it. Bare in mind this also: unlike Sky, ITV doesn't buy ROI rights for its programmes, though I don't buy that they couldn't have changed their commissioning arrangements to cover Ireland.

political analyst

icdg wrote: »

For many years - and certainly during that key period of 1993-2000 - UTV quite definitely targeted the Republic audience, and saw itself nearly as the second channel of the island of Ireland as much as being the ITV franchisee for NI. Alas a number of things took it off that perch, chiefly but not exclusively the TV3-Granada deal in late 2000. (The advent of digital TV also played a key part).

Was the dumbing-down of ITV programming from 1999 onwards also a factor?

icdg

Although I agree that the 2000s was definitely a dark age for ITV (one which it has taken it most of the last five years and is only really now recovering from) no, I don't think it was a factor here. Losing (mostly) exclusivity to ITV programmes was key. But underestimated by most commentators was the digital transition. Now, I'll have to talk antecdotally, which is always dangerous. But in the 1990s, most cable households would have had UTV tuned to either 3 or 5. TV3, which launched in 1998, wouldn't have always been tuned to 3. Many households booted it to the end (and its maybe hard to remember now, but TV3 up till the end of 2000 was mostly composed of American programmes and Channel 5 stuff). When digital came in, TV3 had the guarentee 103/3 slot, and UTV was only on cable and in a much lower position (initially 107, later 111). This hit it bad when it came to people choosing between it and TV3 for ITV programmes.

Delta2113

You won't get Utv (Northern Ireland) back on Virgin Media.

Maybe just maybe you would have TV3, Utv Ireland (new name 3 Mate or 3 Girl or 3 Plus or whatever) and 3e.

Maybe just close Utv Ireland and you will have TV3 with corrie and emmerdale back etc.

Maybe 3e could show this morning and Loose Woman.

Al ot of maybe - the key is exactly what would be bought -assets,property etc.

No way will you still have two separate news etc. Job cuts could be significant.

Anybody any idea how Utv Ireland facilites compare to TV3?

Could Virgin even consider using Utv Ireland spare capacity -staff etc. and launch a new channel for U.K. and Ireland.

How hard would it be operating from Utv Ireland Dublin facilities but give it a U.K. feel for Virgin Media Cable U.K.customer's.

If Red Rock does well on BBC -stick it on Virgin Media U.K. as exclusive in U.K. -opportunities could be endless.

twinklerunner

TV3's version of UTV Ireland on Sky 105?

Pity, as a sky viewer I will miss it for the ITV dramas! Can't record or series link if it's only accessible through the Other Channels mode!

icdg

It seems no one else has picked up this story yet (other than to re-report the Telegraph) so it'll be interesting to see how this progresses.

Delta2113

icdg wrote: »

It seems no one else has picked up this story yet (other than to re-report the Telegraph) so it'll be interesting to see how this progresses.

- Front page of Sunday Business Post today. Although this is the paper that promised a 24 hour news channel from tv3 and numerous other tv3 channels.

channelsurfer2

What will they do with it? They might close 3e if it goes ahead?

icdg

I'd nearly be certain that it will be UTV Ireland that will be closed and its key programmes moved to TV3. I'd expect all the ITV breakfast and daytime shows that have counterparts on TV3 will simply be dropped and won't be available here, except for Jeremy Kyle (and maybe Judge Rinder).

I'd see 3e being relatively unaffected and to go on as before, more or less.

Delta2113

I'd agree -most likely keep TV3 and 3e and hopefully vastly improve 3e.

Maybe TV3 could carry the This Morning and/ or Loose Woman show's - pretty poplar as far as I know.

I'd imagine a 5,10 or 15 year deal on Corrie & Emmerdale would be part of the deal.

political analyst

icdg wrote: »

They will almost certainly, if this report is accurate, sign a deal which will tie their hands from doing so. We'll see the prime time ITV Studios programmes move to TV3, plus Jeremy Kyle. Like it was before.

If you like GMB, Lorraine, This Morning, ITV dramas etc...you'll need to buy a satellite dish.

Why would TV3 not be interested in broadcasting ITV dramas?

Elmo

political analyst wrote: »

Why would TV3 not be interested in broadcasting ITV dramas?

Good question but we believe that TV3 had the same rights as UTV Ireland and stop all ITV dramas outside soap in 2006.

political analyst

If UTV Ireland ceases to exist then why not have ITV on Virgin Media and Sky in the Republic but with all ITV network programmes to which TV3 would have the rights blacked out?

Elmo

political analyst wrote: »

If UTV Ireland ceases to exist then why not have ITV on Virgin Media and Sky in the Republic but with all ITV network programmes to which TV3 would have the rights blacked out?

Because you still fragment the audience TV3 will want to retain all 6% of UTVs audience the best chance they have is by rebranding UTV Ireland and blocking ITV broadcast as much as possible.

icdg

Delta2113 wrote: »

Maybe TV3 could carry the This Morning and/ or Loose Woman show's - pretty poplar as far as I know..

They are, but in particular TV3's Midday is almost an exact clone of Loose Women airing in a similar time slot, and TV3 won't drop an Irish made show for a UK one.

I looked at that Business Post article and there's nothing really new in it save a mention that it might be the whole of ITV that Liberty is interested in, which would put a different spin on things.

Omar C

icdg wrote: »

I'd nearly be certain that it will be UTV Ireland that will be closed and its key programmes moved to TV3. I'd expect all the ITV breakfast and daytime shows that have counterparts on TV3 will simply be dropped and won't be available here, except for Jeremy Kyle (and maybe Judge Rinder).

I'd see 3e being relatively unaffected and to go on as before, more or less.

I Can't see any of this happen it the near further, As itv have paid €100 millions for all channels which utv IRELAND & Utv ni, the sooner that itv get the finger out and rebrand utv Ireland to Itv Ireland it will be brillant. @ the present time itv seem to be wastin a lot of money putting it into a FAILING tv station like utv Ireland.