ITN appointed as news provider for Channel 5
ITN has won back the contract to produce the news for Channel 5, beginning in 2012 with an initial three-year term.
As most reports suggested last week, the re—appointment of ITM follows an agreement between Sky and Northern & Shell to terminate their 5 News contract ahead of the original end date of December 2012.
Jeff Ford, Director of Programming, Channel 5, said: "Over the last six years, Sky News has provided a news service which has helped to place Channel 5 at the forefront of public service news distribution. As we enter our second year under new ownership and with recent boosts in ratings and overall audience share, we continue at pace as a competitive terrestrial broadcaster. Through this new deal with ITN, we have a partner which will help to take us into the next phase of our news distribution and we look forward to a long and fruitful partnership."
The operation will be based at Channel 5’s headquarters and connect with ITN’s central infrastructure and protocols, with a bespoke state-of-the-art newsroom and studio developed by ITN to house the latest graphics, technology and desktop editing facilities.
John Hardie, CEO of ITN, said: “ITN broke new ground and changed the landscape of news broadcasting by launching 5 News back in 1997.
“We are delighted to be working with Channel 5 again and we see the evolution of its news service as a major pillar of our output. This significant contract win reinforces ITN’s important role in the UK’s media landscape and reiterates our position as the pre-eminent producer of commercial television news.”
Alongside expertise from within ITN, staff will comprise the existing team producing 5 News, with a new editor to be appointed soon following David Kermode’s announcement in September that he will be joining Daybreak.