5 Minutes
ITV Studios’ milestone: growth in a changing TV landscape
ITV turned 70 last year, and the anniversary has been marked not by nostalgic retrospectives but by strategic reshaping. As the broadcaster prepares to part with its traditional networks business in a deal with Sky, its production and distribution arm — ITV Studios — has quietly achieved a major objective: together with ITV’s digital Media & Entertainment (M&E) division it now generates roughly two-thirds of the group’s revenues. CEO Carolyn McCall called this a "key strategic goal" when the company published its annual results.
The numbers tell a nuanced story. ITV Studios grew revenue by 5% to £2.13 billion ($2.84B) in the most recent financial year, led by a 10% jump in "external revenue" — productions sold outside the ITV network. Scripted content rose by 10% year-on-year, and the business met a target for streamer exposure with 28% of revenue now coming from streaming platforms. But it wasn’t all upward momentum: U.S. revenue fell by 18% and adjusted EBITA for the studios arm remained broadly flat.
Meanwhile, group results were flatter. ITV’s total revenue held steady at £4.12 billion, while the M&E segment — the commissioning and advertising side that still anchors the traditional network — slipped 5%. Group adjusted EBITA eased to £534 million and adjusted pre-tax profit dropped to £448 million. Those figures underline a familiar pattern across global broadcasters: production and distribution are increasingly the growth engines, while ad-funded network operations face headwinds.
Industry context and what it means for TV fans
ITV Studios’ success reflects bigger trends across the content business. The market is highly fragmented — from mega-streamers to FAST channels and a raft of regional platforms — and that fragmentation both raises costs for content buyers and opens opportunities for nimble producers. ITV’s results explicitly point to content licensing, particularly digital and FAST (Free Ad-supported Streaming TV) channels, as an area of continued growth.
For viewers, this often means more localized versions of global formats and a steady stream of familiar tentpoles. ITV Studios sells formats like Love Island and Hell’s Kitchen around the world; Love Island’s global adaptations continue to be a social-media phenomenon, while Hell’s Kitchen remains a durable unscripted brand with a reliable international buyer base.
Comparisons and competitive landscape
ITV’s pivot toward studios mirrors moves by peers such as Fremantle, Banijay and BBC Studios, all of which have been beefing up production and distribution to capture global demand for both scripted drama and unscripted formats. Banijay’s pending merger with All3Media and its public refusal to rule out interest in parts of ITV underscore how consolidation is reshaping the sector. The separating of network and studio — with Sky reportedly acquiring the ITV network but not the studios arm — highlights the industry’s split between content creation and channel carriage.
From a creative standpoint, ITV Studios’ growth in scripted content places it in more direct competition with international drama powerhouses, while its unscripted catalogue keeps it highly relevant to streaming platforms seeking reliable, cost-effective formats.
"ITV’s results are a lesson in strategic focus," says cinema historian Marko Jensen. "Doubling down on production and content licensing makes sense in a fragmented market. But the decline in U.S. revenues shows the risks: scale matters when you’re playing on a global stage."
Risks and the road ahead
There are clear risks: advertising weakness and a declining linear audience hit the M&E revenue stream, and the drop in U.S. income highlights the volatility of overseas markets. Adjusted profitability remaining flat for the studios suggests growth is coming with rising costs or investment spending. Still, ITV argues that relative size versus the total addressable market means there’s ample runway for market share gains.
For fans and industry watchers, the immediate takeaway is familiar shows will keep coming — but increasingly through a mix of traditional broadcast, streaming platforms and FAST channels. For the company, the next chapters will be defined by execution: keeping scripted momentum, expanding licensing channels, and converting creativity into more sustainable margins.
A short concluding note: ITV’s transformation from a network-first broadcaster into a studios-led content supplier is a microcosm of global media change — a bet on formats, drama and licensing to fuel the future of TV and streaming.
Source: deadline
Comments
cryptolark
Whoa, Love Island fueling so much revenue? wild mix of clever biz and lowbrow TV. Hope creativity doesnt get traded for repeatable cash grabs... risky, imo
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