ITV Q1 revenues down 7%
May 11, 2023
ITV has published its Q1 trading update for the 3 months to March 31st. Total external revenue was down 7 per cent to £776 million (€893.3 million).
Carolyn McCall, ITV Chief Executive, commented: “ITV continued to make significant strategic progress in the quarter and all parts of the business performed in line with expectations. ITVX has sustained its strong launch, with a 49 per cent increase in streaming hours and a 29 per cent growth in digital revenue in the quarter. Exclusives, such as Nolly and The Twelve attracted new viewers, 80 per cent of whom went on to explore other content on ITVX. In addition, live simulcast viewing of our biggest shows and sports events, including Love Island and the FA Cup attracted large streaming audiences.”
“ITV Studios continues to demonstrate significant strategic momentum. With a strong pipeline of content and committed revenues, it is on track to deliver mid-single digit revenue growth over the full year, ahead of the market. This follows record revenues in Q4 2022 and with the phasing of deliveries expected to be weighted to the second half of 2023.”
“Total advertising revenue in Q1 was down 10% – as expected and better than the wider TV advertising market. We are looking forward to Q3 with Love Island and the Rugby World Cup set to draw large broadcast and streaming audiences.”
“ITV is successfully executing Phase Two of its More Than TV strategy, despite the current challenging macro and geopolitical environment, as we continue to satisfy the growing demand for content globally and the desire for advertisers to secure both mass reach and targeted digital audiences,” she concluded.
Financial and operating performance summary
● Total external revenue down 7 per cent at £776 million (2022: £834 million)
ITV Studios
● Total ITV Studios revenue, including the benefit of foreign exchange, was flat at £457 million (2022: £458 million) with the phasing of deliveries in 2023 expected to be weighted to the second half
ITV Media & Entertainment (M&E)
● M&E revenue was down 9 per cent at £495 million (2022: £545 million), with total advertising revenue (TAR) as expected down 10 per cent.
● Within this digital advertising revenue was up 30 per cent at £87 million compared to the same period in 2022
● Total M&E non-advertising revenue in the quarter was flat with growth in subscription revenue offset by the expected decline in SDN revenue
● Total digital revenues were up 29 per cent and total streaming hours were up 49 per cent in Q1
● ITV maintained its strength in delivering mass reach with 93 per cent of the top 1,000 commercially broadcast TV programmes and 34.4 per cent share of commercial viewing on channels
ITV’s share price dropped by 5.88 per cent on the trading update.