ITV cuts £30m in spending as advertising revenue falls and warns of a fourth-quarter drop of up to 10%

ITV, the UK broadcaster behind Love Island and I'm A Celebrity Get Me Out of Here, published its figures for the first nine months of 2026 alongside a warning about the final quarter of the year. The company is also in the middle of selling its channels and streaming business to Sky.

Savings plan

ITV said on 11 November that it has identified £30m of additional temporary savings for the fourth quarter to align its costs with weaker advertiser demand. Of that total, £25m comes from content and £5m from discretionary non-content costs. Some content will be delayed into next year, and the cuts are likely to mean fewer new shows and more repeats of older programmes. ITV also confirmed that jobs are not set to be affected by the cost-cutting. The total content budget for 2026 is expected to be about £1.2bn.

Advertising revenue weakens

Total advertising revenue fell 8% in the third quarter, the three months to the end of September, and was down 1% across the first nine months. ITV now expects it to fall between 5% and 10% in the fourth quarter and between 2% and 3% for 2026 as a whole. Analysts had expected advertising to fall by 1.8% on average in the quarter, so the new guidance is weaker than forecast. ITV pointed to broader economic uncertainty, competition from global streaming platforms and restrictions on advertising less healthy food, which took effect on 1 October 2025. Carolyn McCall, the chief executive, said demand had weakened in the second half of the year.

“Demand for advertising in the second half has weakened.”

Advertising is also shifting toward digital and streaming rivals such as Netflix and YouTube.

Third quarter 2026-8%

First nine months 2026-1%

Third quarter 2026

-8 %

First nine months 2026

-1 %

Data from the article text

Streaming and digital growth

Total revenue for the first nine months fell 1% to £2.76bn from £2.79bn a year earlier. Media and Entertainment revenue, covering the television channels and the ITVX streaming service, fell 1% to £1.43bn, while ITV Studios fell 1% to £1.33bn. Viewing online was the strongest sign of growth, with hours watched rising 29% to 2.15 billion from 1.67 billion. Digital revenue increased 7% to £461m and digital advertising revenue rose 6%. ITV credited the final matches of the football World Cup and shows including Big Brother, Love Island and Trigger Point for helping its viewing figures.

First nine months 20251.67

First nine months 20262.15

First nine months 2025

1.67 billion hours

First nine months 2026

2.15 billion hours

Data from the article text

Sky sale and outlook

ITV agreed in July to sell its Media and Entertainment business to Sky in a deal worth up to £1.6bn, covering the TV channels, the streaming service and the advertising operations. ITV said the sale is progressing as expected and continues to expect completion during the second half of 2027. Its shares fell 5% in early trading on 11 November. McCall said the company remains on track for good revenue growth at ITV Studios and continued profitable digital growth at Media & Entertainment over the full year. ITV expects revenue, margin and profit to be heavily weighted to the fourth quarter.