ITV's appetite for online and digital ventures

ITV's Digital Media Plans; $78 Million Online Ad Revs in 2005

UK broadcaster ITV reported its 2005 results today, and also elaborated on plans for digital media, through ITV.com and its newly announced brand ITV Play.

Among other things, ITV CEO Charles Allen wants to make programmes such as Coronation Street available on iPods. He added that ITV wanted to digitize its catalog as the company.

Allen said ITV considered mobile phones to be "an interesting opportunity" for distributing content, adding that the new ITV Play digital "participation TV" channel announced today would have mobile phone and broadband streaming elements. It hopes to generate $35 million from the ITV Play business in its first full year.