So ITV results are out and not good, predictably with the news that they won't pay a dividend ITV have to show some evidence of belt tightening and the folks at the Leeds studios are in the front line with many paying by losing their jobs.
Questions on the future include of course Can Grade survive?
Where does it leave ITV?
Bu there's not too much real change so far at ITV and no clear answer to the financial pressures causing the grief. the pressures aren't going to disappear anytime soon so rather than ploughing on into the rocks some changes need to be made.
I'm afraid I see some logic in separating the two businesses within ITV that we can describe as Production and the transmission chain. Where production does a fine job making premium content for broadcasters that include Channel 4 and BBC and ITV transmission tries to put together a schedule that delivers viewers to paid for messages.
Some have already suggested that an ITV production company could be attractive to Sky (and it would not materially affect competition) ITV transmission could then move to a Publisher/broadcaster model with the ability to commission where it wishes to maximise those important audiences and keep a low cost structure for getting suitable content to air (perhaps using Red Bee).
The idea that ITV should be all about managing decline is negative and the concept that ITV can once again be a ' licence to print money' is unrealistic - as they say the drama continues.
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