Bidders line up to wrest control of Channel 4

Privatization goes against the wishes of Channel 4 bosses, who argue that the cut-throat nature of commercial broadcasting will inevitably hit its public service output. Undaunted ministers believe the network can still meet minimum obligations in areas such as prime-time news while slashing budgets.

While any changes would have to be cleared by Ofcom, the story of Paramount-owned Channel 5, which meets its broadcast obligations on an annual content budget of just £240m, suggests that the far larger £660m budget of Channel 4 provides some wriggle room.

As Britain’s largest commercial broadcaster, ITV is regarded as a front runner to wrest control of the remote from the government’s clutches, with significant synergies likely to result in brutal cost-cutting of offices and staff.

Another candidate is pay-TV provider Sky, which has increasingly been targeting public sector broadcasting, as exemplified by its free-to-air Sky Arts service – although whether that pull is sufficient following its acquisition by Comcast remains unclear.

Across the pond, Discovery has been a recurring name in conversations around potential suitors, with the documentary brand often cited as the most likely purchaser as it seeks to curtail reliance on pay-TV in favor of free-to-air broadcasts.

Paramount may also be tempted to throw its hat into the ring and complete its set of British free-to-air channels, although this could be as much through a desire to prevent it from falling into the hands of a rival as any genuine zeal to reinvigorate the broadcaster.

None of the parties named have commented publicly on the purchase, but with a profit margin of 8% – half that of commercial rivals – there is certainly sufficient meat on the bone to spark a feeding frenzy if and when a sale is put into motion.

Talk of a putative sale has already sparked a bout of hand-wringing from advertisers, many of whom are concerned at the potential to undermine the network’s famed outreach to diverse audiences.