Ofcom’s review of the ITV Networking Arrangements established a number of important principles to be applied to the arrangements by which ITV Network commissions programming both from in-house and external producers.
One of those principles was equality of treatment as between in-house and external producers. In its Final Statement, Ofcom required ITV Network to extend the 2004 ITV Code of Practice for commissioning programming from independent producers (“2004 CoP”) to cover all producers, including in-house producers, and make changes to the 2004 CoP to accommodate this principle of equal treatment.
In the course of discussions with ITV licensees about the implementation of the requirements of the Ofcom review a number of issues have arisen in relation to the exploitation of programming commissioned by ITV Network. These issues relate both to the exploitation of programming within the UK on channels other than ITV1 and to the exploitation of programming within overseas markets, notably the Republic of Ireland ("RoI") where issues arise due to the broadcasting of television services from the RoI into Northern Ireland (“NI”) and vice versa.
Ofcom considers that it is important that there is a clear commitment by ITV Network that programming commissioned by ITV Network and which is paid for by the Network Programme Budget should be intended to have its exclusive first transmission on ITV1. If ITV1’s exclusivity is waived, either in advance of the first ITV1 transmission, or during the exclusive UK licence period, Ofcom would expect such waivers to be available in principle to all producers, both in house and external, and on equivalent terms