ITV warns over ‘challenging’ ad outlook as annual profits fall
The group behind hit shows Love Island and I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here! reported underlying pre-tax profits of £672m for 2022, down from £774m in 2021, as total advertising revenues fell 1 per cent and it spent heavily on content and its ITVX online hub.
ITV cautioned over a “challenging” ad spend outlook amid economic uncertainty in the UK, predicting ad sales to plunge by around 11 per cent year-on-year in the first quarter – falling by as much as 16 per cent in March – and to remain down by between 10 per cent and 15 per cent in April.
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Hide AdChief executive Dame Carolyn McCall said: “The short-term outlook is challenging, with total advertising revenue expected to be down around 11 per cent in the first quarter, but we remain very focused on successfully executing the strategy and enter 2023 with strong momentum.”
She said advertisers are expecting the second half of 2023 to be “easier than the first half, but that remains to be seen”.
The figures come as ITV and fellow broadcaster Sky have been asked by media watchdog Ofcom “to explain their actions” in their coverage of the Nicola Bulley case after her family questioned the role of the media during the investigation. Dame Carolyn said ITV was a “responsible broadcaster and we take it very seriously”. ITV said it will “continue to manage our costs tightly” and is set to deliver £15m of savings in 2023 as part of a previously announced £50m target by 2026, which comes on top of the £106m of cuts between 2018 and 2022.