ITV in deal for Channel Television

Broadcaster ITV is to take control of another slice of the channel 3 network following a deal to acquire Channel Television today.

The move by ITV - formed in 2004 through the merger of Carlton and Granada - will leave STV's two operations in Scotland and Northern Ireland's UTV as the only independently owned broadcasters out of 15 channel 3 franchises.

Channel Television is owned by Yattendon, a family-run company which also operates a string of regional newspapers including Cambridge News, Burton Mail and Bedfordshire on Sunday.

ITV, which has not disclosed the purchase price or further details on the acquisition, still requires the approval of the Jersey competition authority.

As well as serving 150,000 people in 54,000 homes across the Channel Islands, the regional broadcaster manages the compliance for some of ITV's biggest shows, including The X Factor, to ensure they meet regulatory standards.

Last year chief executive Adam Crozier announced a five-year plan to fix the basics at ITV by simplifying and consolidating the business.

Yattendon's newspaper titles have a combined circulation of almost 1.2 million copies per week across Cambridgeshire, Suffolk, Essex, Hertfordshire, Bedfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Staffordshire, Derbyshire and Warwickshire.

PA