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Closure of Wales and NI ITV+1 services

Posted on 15th April 2021 by Andrew Nairn
Last updated on 15th April 2021 Filed under Opinion

One of ITV’s main public service responsibilities is regional broadcasting. The volume may have diminished over the years but it is still one of the channel’s unique selling points and legal obligations.

It is to the company’s credit that virtually all its regions are now in HD on satellite – unlike the BBC’s English regions. ITV is a business and not a charity so it is right that it should have been reviewing how it used its satellite space.

To make space for HD channels it has reduced the number of SD regional services available on Sky and Freesat.

The loss of more SD versions of the main channel will make little difference now. Virtually all satellite viewers have HD equipment and the SD service is a legacy.

But might the reduction in +1 regions attract some comment?

In the English regions, if truth be told, it makes little difference. Few watch the regional news an hour later on catch up.

But satellite viewers in Wales and, from this week, Northern Ireland have lost their dedicated services too. Presumably ITV has calculated the savings are greater than any loss of local advertising revenue.

It should be stressed that regional programmes in Wales and Northern Ireland are still available online for anyone who missed their broadcast on the main channel.

But might dropping the tailored +1s risk sending out the wrong signals about ITV’s genuine commitment to services for these nations?

In Northern Ireland’s case, the +1 service only went on to satellite relatively recently and is still available on Freeview.

It is interesting though, that Northern Ireland satellite viewers now see a +1 service covering another of ITV’s macro advertising regions.

There may be questions too about whether the whole suite of regional +1s across the network will continue on Freeview in the medium term.

But there is naturally another unintended consequence in NI.

The satellite EPG now, of course, lists ITV+1 rather than UTV+1. The EPG titles remained after the station adopted ITV continuity last year.

So yet another of the few remaining legacy pieces of distinct UTV branding has gone by stealth.  This means, technically, there is now an ITV+1 EPG entry linked to a service still branded as UTV on the EPG.

Surely this needs to be tidied up soon? ITV or ITV – UTV? Place your bets now.

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Tags: ITV, ITV plc, ITV Wales, UTV

Dates for the Diary

30th January: BBC Reporting Scotland moves to a temporary set. The programme will move back to a refurbished Studio C in the summer.

30th/31st January: BBC One East HD and BBC One East Midlands HD launch on satellite.

6th/7th February: BBC One West Midlands HD, BBC One East Yorkshire/Lincolnshire HD and BBC Alba HD launch on satellite. BBC One/Two Wales SD services close on satellite.

13th/14th February: BBC One West HD, BBC One South West HD, BBC One Channel Islands HD, BBC One London HD and BBC RB1 HD launch on satellite.

20th/21st February: BBC One North East and Cumbria HD, BBC One North West HD, BBC One Yorkshire HD and BBC Parliament HD launch on satellite. BBC One Scotland SD and BBC Scotland SD services close on satellite.

22nd/23rd February: BBC One South East HD launches on satellite.

February 2023: new set for BBC Midlands Today goes live.

13th February 2023: Sky Kids launches.

Q1 2023: BBC Chameleon branding introduced on air for BBC Weather, CBBC and CBeebies.

April 2023: BBC News Channel and BBC World News merge.

November/December 2023: World Radiocommunications Conference (WRC-23).

Q1 2024: SD versions of BBC channels close on satellite.

2024: BBC Four and CBBC go online-only.

2024: BBC Radio 4 Extra goes online-only.

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