Advertising revenues at ITV fell by 42% in April as demand was hit by the Covid-19 pandemic.
In a trading update, the broadcaster said that it had paused the majority of its productions globally as a result of restrictions on its working practices.
However, its ITV Studios Global Distribution unit, which sells its content internationally is seeing “good demand” for its product.
ITV is also seeing good growth for BritBox, the newly launched streaming service it runs with the BBC, with free trial starts and subscriptions, though no new numbers were offered.
A BritBox distribution deal with EE has launched, C4 content is now available on the platform and as reported in Broadband TV News this week, it is also being rolled out to YouView and Freeview Play.
“ITV has taken swift and decisive action to manage and mitigate the impact of COVID-19, by focusing on our people and their safety, and by continuing to reduce costs and tightly manage our cashflow and liquidity,” said Carolyn McCall, ITV Chief Executive. “We are also ensuring that we continue to inform and entertain our viewers and stay close to our advertisers.”
ITV total viewing was up 2% with very strong growth in online viewing at 75%, simulcast viewing up 112% and reach up 40% on the ITV Hub.
