ITV makes the grade on advertising upturn

ITV chairman Michael Grade yesterday said the broadcaster made "measurable progress" in 2007 after better on-screen and advertising performances.

The group reported a 2 per cent lift in net advertising revenues for flagship station ITV1 during November and said there had also been an upturn in its audience share.

Grade rejoined ITV at the start of this year with the aim of making it the UK's favourite source of free entertainment by 2012.

With late money still entering the market, ITV said estimates for ITV1's net advertising revenues (NAR) in December also continued to improve.

Across the second half of 2007, ITV said it expected NAR for ITV1 to be flat with the figure for all of ITV's channels showing a 3.5 per cent improvement.

In terms of ITV's viewing performance, the company's volume of commercial impacts – audience share – rose 3.1 per cent across all ITV channels.

Grade said: "Our focus for 2008 is on implementing the turnaround plan set out in September."

• Daily Record publisher Trinity Mirror said advertising revenues for 2007 were running marginally higher.

However, in a trading update it also noted that "month-on-month volatility" would continue in 2008.