There are times when someone who cares about TV should be keeping across the business news.
In recent weeks, there’s been intense speculation about the possibility of a bid for ITV plc.
So far nothing has come of it but, as is usually the way, the speculation has boosted the company’s share price.
Some city analysts have spoken of a “break up” bid for the company.
This basically suggests that ITV plc is undervalued by the stock market.
Its two separate divisions – ITV Studios and the consumer business which runs the channels – would be separately owned if such a move were to happen.
For absolute clarity, a break up would not mean a return to the old ITV regional structure. There is no suggestion of “breaking up” the broadcasting business into separate regional companies again.
Rather there would be two entirely separate businesses.
- The operation currently known as ITV Studios. It makes the bulk of ITV’s programmes and wins commissions from other broadcasters. It also sells programmes and formats internationally.
- The consumer business which trades directly with the public. This runs the broadcast channels and ITV X.
The idea that a commercial public service broadcaster need not have any significant programme making capacity of its own is not unusual – Channel 4 and Channel 5 commission all their programmes from independent production companies.
Whether this would make long-term sense for ITV is a different question.
Ultimately the commercial importance of linear channels is declining.
In fact, for anyone who cares about television in society, the problems which have faced major broadcasters in recent years should be a major concern.
Pressure on budgets has meant fewer commissions and a greater degree of risk aversion. It is not hard to see why some in independent production and commercial broadcasting worry that the industry is dying.
Earlier this year came the worrying news that ITV lost money on the superb production Mr Bates Versus The Post Office despite good ratings.
You can hardly blame a commercial channel for deciding to strip The 1% Club across the week at 9pm instead of investing in a drama. The cost is lower and the audience will be similar in size or perhaps bigger.
I wonder if we will see more such moves.
What is genuinely concerning though is that there seem to be occasions when ITV 1 now puts up the white flag and accepts that BBC One is going to dominate.
As a big supporter of the BBC, you might think I would be happy about this. Actually I’m not.
While I love to see the BBC win – and the corporation must never use ratings as the sole judge of success – the viewing public benefits from competition and choice.
BBC One needs a degree of direct competition.
Take Saturday 14th.
It was a big night for the BBC with the Strictly final which deservedly won 8.6m viewers.
But not everyone loves Strictly.
Not so long ago, the Saturday in the run up to the last full shopping week before Christmas would have been a massive night on ITV 1 too.
Instead ITV 1 simply accepted that there was no point throwing away a good programme against Strictly, put on the Downton Abbey movie and got just 0.6m viewers.
Two programmes on BBC Two about Wham! later in the evening won more than that.
I don’t think we need to think too hard about which channel will win Christmas Day hands down either.
When I first saw that ITV 1 was planning to run Home Alone 2 and a repeat of the Bullseye revival on Christmas afternoon, I thought a provisional schedule with deliberate disinformation had been published in error.
No doubt other programmes on Christmas Day will do well but I almost wonder if ITV 1’s Christmas afternoon movie will lose out to Some Like It Hot on BBC Two.
This all strikes me as purely economically driven. With budgets under pressure, it makes business sense to focus purely on the slots you might win.
But it is not good for the viewing public.
And while the BBC must think of more than ratings, supporters of the corporation should not enjoy seeing the main commercial channel appearing to give up.
Acknowledgements
PICTURED: ITV corporate logo. COPYRIGHT: ITV plc.