Key facts
- ITV expects fourth-quarter ad revenue in its TV and streaming division to fall 5% to 10%.
- ITV said full-year ad sales are expected to drop 2% to 3%.
- The £30 million of savings comprise £25 million in content and £5 million elsewhere, which ITV called temporary.
- Content cuts will mostly affect small external commissions, pushing them into 2027, it is understood.
- ITV said the proposed savings would not involve staff cuts.
- ITV said studios revenue was down 1% in the first nine months of the year.
ITV said on November 11, 2026 that it plans to cut costs by £30 million, with advertising revenue in its television and streaming division expected to fall between 5% and 10% in the fourth quarter of the year. The broadcaster said full-year ad sales are expected to drop between 2% and 3%.
The savings comprise £25 million in content and £5 million elsewhere in the business, which ITV described as temporary. Content budget cuts will mostly affect small external commissions, pushing them into 2027, it is understood. ITV indicated the proposed savings would not involve staff cuts.
Carolyn McCall, ITV's chief executive, said demand for ads had weakened because of continuing broader macroeconomic uncertainty and increased digital advertising on global streaming platforms. She also cited new rules this year that imposed a 9pm watershed on TV advertising for less healthy food.
Shares in ITV, which are listed on London's FTSE 250 index, dropped by as much as 5% in early trading on Wednesday, November 11, 2026. The company has lost about a fifth of its market value since the start of the year.
ITV has agreed to sell its television and streaming business to Sky for £1.6 billion. Last week, Lisa Nandy, the culture secretary, issued a public interest intervention notice, triggering an investigation by Ofcom and the Competition and Markets Authority. Nandy raised concerns that the combined broadcasters would account for about 86% of linear news and current affairs viewing in Britain, as well as concerns over potential US political influence on editorial independence. Sky is owned by the US broadcaster Comcast.
ITV said on November 11, 2026 that the deal was progressing as planned and that it still expects to complete in the second half of 2027. The sale will leave ITV with its studios business, which makes shows for ITV and other broadcasters and streamers. ITV told investors that studios revenue was down 1% in the first nine months of the year, but that it had made five of the UK's top 10 most-watched dramas in the third quarter of 2026, including The Gentlemen for Netflix and The Blame for ITV.