(ITV.L) ITV PLC Buy/Sell

Archie now needs to be very decisive and appoint a top rate CEO. He should not be taken in by the Cresswell propoganda machine. Cresswell is a safe pair of hands, but has no vision and is certainly not a leader of people. The critical person to retain is Fincham, but keep him focused on content.

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I bought shares when Archie moved in to Asda. This bloke is fantastic; he is the best thing for ITV. Thos who can get in now would be wise to do so. At this price it is cheap. Archie will turn it around. Yes some out there don’t like him because he doesn’t understand the TV industry. That is good because then he can’t be side lined, he is there to turn it around, when he has he will move on. He is not to make TV friends. You watch him. I have every faith in him. People say they have lost money with him, but everywhere he goes the shares either triple or quadruple. I’ve bough several thousand at this price. Everything is going good for these shares. Just because Digital is here it is not the end for terrestrial a new beginning. Sometimes we have to look further than today. Hold tight and you will be rewarded.

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I remember Archie flaming Norman as the person who shafted every single pi who was lured into WST.
First he used his status as Thatchers hatchet man to drum up as much publicity as he could, then he just left.....no warning whatsoever.

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Chief Operating Officer John Cresswell said Wednesday that 2010 looks promising due to a strong program line-up, including the soccer World Cup in South Africa, even as he cautioned that visibility remains limited and flagged further cost savings.
Cresswell also praised the appointment Wednesday of Archie Norman as the company's new chairman.
ITV, the U.K.'s biggest terrestrial commercial broadcaster by sales, has refocused on programs that can generate revenue such as entertainment and game shows, Cresswell told delegates at Morgan Stanley's annual Technology, Media and Telecoms Conference in Barcelona, after saying earlier this year it would trim its drama budget and axe some long-standing shows.
ITV already broadcasts popular shows such as The X-Factor, and the December final this year is expected to bring in a huge advertising windfall for the company.
Cresswell flagged further cost efficiencies within the business as well as opportunities to invest in programming, without elaborating.
Cresswell also reiterated that he isn't interested in the chief executive job at ITV following the long awaited appointment of former Asda Group Ltd. boss Norman as the group's new chairman Wednesday, which Cresswell described as a "fantastic" hire.
Norman cemented his credentials as a turnaround specialist when he transformed Asda from a struggling supermarket with slipping market share into a "low-prices" retail giant that was snapped up by Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (WMT) in 1999 for GBP6.7 billion.
Norman will take over from Michael Grade, who is also CEO, in January, at which time Cresswell will become interim CEO. Cresswell will leave ITV when a new CEO is appointed.
Cresswell was coy on the group's medium term margin prospects, noting "the challenge for us is understanding how quickly the regulatory costs will fall."
Asked about next year's general election in the U.K., Cresswell said if the opposition Conservative Party wins it will be positive for the industry as it has pledged to reduce the regulatory burden.
ITV is talking to its pension trustees about reducing its pension deficit, and will provide an update with its results next year, he said.
ITV earlier this month forecast its first expected rise in advertising revenue in nearly two years, for December, at which time Cresswell forecast that the December performance would be skewed by favorable comparisons and it was too early to say if the positive trends would continue.
ITV has seen sales and profits dive as companies cut back on advertising and rates tumbled amid the credit crunch and economic downturn. The company has also faced increased competition from online and digital outlets and regulatory pressures.
The company has said it is on track to deliver GBP155 million of savings in 2009 and has strengthened its balance sheet by repaying GBP75 million of its existing GBP125 million loan following its convertible-bond issue in October.

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What do you think will happen for the remainder of the week? Good news, in my eyes, with the appointment of Mr Norman today but is it enough to see any more rises up to the end of the week. I know you're in SiW, or are you now out? I have a small holding for the record.

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"Archie Norman, as confirmed by official figures shared, will be paid an annual salary of ?300,000, and will be given 1.2 million ITV shares, valued at nearly 60 pence per share."

http://topnews.co.uk/2767-archie-norman-replace-michael-grade-itv-chairman

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Norman's 'irresistible' ITV challenge

Replacing Michael Grade as chairman of ITV is an "irresistible challenge", Archie Norman has said.

With the commercial television industry in dire straits because of a massive downturn in advertising revenue, his new job will certainly be a challenge. There are those in the industry, though, who would disagree that it is an irresistible one.

In the first half of this year, the broadcaster made a pre-tax loss of £105m.

And in October, it said it was hoping to raise £120m - by selling bonds - in an effort to reduce debt.

Providing a solution to the broadcaster's financial woes is not the only problem Mr Norman will be expected to get to grips with.

One of his first jobs will be to find a new chief executive - ending a search which has been ongoing since April.

Grade, who is stepping down from the company, had been both chairman and chief executive.

STV dispute

In September, it was announced that talks with former Sky boss Tony Ball about becoming chief executive had broken down.

Mr Ball was unhappy about ITV's proposed candidate for chairman - former Reed Elsevier head Sir Crispin Davis, who also subsequently pulled out of the running.

On the other side of the camera, ITV, like other broadcasters, has been accused of neglecting quality drama in favour of reality TV shows.



Michael Grade announced in April he would be stepping down
The company's production arm, ITV Studios in Manchester, has suffered a series of cutbacks.

And in July, screenwriter Jimmy McGovern said that Bafta-winning series The Street - made by ITV Studios for BBC One - would not return for a fourth series because of those cutbacks.

Also on Mr Norman's radar will be the continuing dispute between ITV and Scottish broadcaster STV.

While ITV owns all the former regional Channel Three stations based in England and Wales, STV, UTV in Northern Ireland, and Channel TV in the Channel Islands are still independent companies.

ITV is suing STV for £38m, saying it is in breach of network agreements by dropping programmes including The Bill and Doc Martin, while STV has counter-sued for £35m.

STV has launched a further legal action over commercial agreements made by ITV without its consent.

Mr Norman will be buoyed, though, by the continued success of ITV big-hitters, including talent shows The X Factor and Britain's Got Talent.

Last week, it was reported that ITV was selling 30-second slots in X Factor advertising breaks for £190,000, with some analysts predicting that could rise to £250,000 for the show's final in December.

At the beginning of November, meanwhile, ITV said its net advertising revenue would grow 4% in December.

That follows falls of 3% in October and 1% in November.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/8366477.stm

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Agreed! Though Norman doesn't start until January, the move is seen as highly positive by the City, hence today's SP rise (55.8p high so far). Despite no previous experience in media, Norman has a proven track record as a highly successful operator noted for leadership skills, who relishes the challenge of high-pressure positions. Seems ideal.

With ad revenues poised to increase from next month, the only thing stopping this flying past 60p is that we may now wait until early next year before a new CEO is appointed (John Cresswell will be interim CEO until then).

Credit to all those who had the bottle to hold over these past few weeks despite some ridiculous scare-mongering from shorters on this BB.

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This guy doesn`t know failure. Good choice.

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Broken through the 10 Day trend.

I see no reason why the 20 and 50 shouldn't be wiped out today too.

Possibly a liittle soon that I antisipated looking at L2.

Current L2 info as of 13:04

Buy Vol - 2,347,654 (46) vS 961,847 (32)

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Get Level 2 now for only £20.00!

I agree. ASDA now steaming ahead.

I am excited about potential of 'product placement' opportunities now possible for advertising within TV prgrammes. I think it will revolutionise ITV and quick to implement too. May even see ASDA as first advertiser to exploit this :-)

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Current Trend is !

50 Day - Top - 57.07 - Bottom 40.86

20 Day - Top - 56.06 - Bottom 45.81

10 Day - Top - 55.20 - Bottom 51.35


I think with this news, we should now break through the top, creating a new higer trend !

Happy Days

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as predicted - it has crossed 54 and i can see the upward trend continue with the appointment of the well respected Archie Norman.

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This is a great apointment for ITV.A very well respected city figure.Some older posters will remember him as the man that saved ASDA.

ASDA were on the road to ruin litterally and he and Alan Leighton turned it round.

He will find a like minded CEO and will change the fortunes of ITV very much for the good for all concerned.

Im very excited by this appointment and the city have clearly welcomed it too.

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jobs for the boys he worked for Asda.. sounds like the banks appoint someone whos never worked in the business before

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see news tab and or http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/8365647.stm for example.

mp

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for ITV Chairmanship

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Either prelude to a "draw" or nuclear options??

mp

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LONDON (Dow Jones)-- ITV PLC (ITV.LN) said Monday it had bought back close to EUR60 million of its 2011-dated bonds as the U.K. broadcaster continues its drive to manage its debt obligations.
The bond buyback has reduced the outstanding amount of its 2011 bond to EUR172 million, the company said in a regulatory statement Monday.
A spokeswoman for the company said the bond buyback was part of the company's ongoing plan to manage its balance sheet and debt profile effectively.
The company's total debt stands at EUR728 million.
In October the company sold a GBP135 million convertible bond issue, and in June it completed a debt exchange.
The exchange resulted in the company's debt being reduced by around EUR80 million and allowed it to extend the maturity on a further EUR187 million of bonds.
The ITV spokeswoman said Monday's bond buyback was funded by the proceeds of the convertible bond issue and balance sheet cash.
ITV, the U.K.'s largest terrestrial commercial broadcaster by sales, has seen revenue and profits dive as the credit crunch and economic downturn cause companies to cut back on advertising.
However, earlier this month, the company said advertising revenue has begun to stabilize
The company has also had to contend with management succession crisis and is continuing to search for a non-executive chairman, a role it has been struggling to fill since Michael Grade announced his departure earlier this year. Once that role is filled it needs to appoint a new chief executive.

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It`s on the way North steadily now guys!

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