ITV must now be a bargain. The current team clearly are an issue but you'd think the big American companies would recognise the bargain.

The yield is also high and can be reinvested. That really does limit the down side. You can even win here if it drops further!

Thanks alders.

Yes, well done Chris - it's nice to have a hobby that makes you money - helps to pay for the golf equipment!!

Very true db :0)

On the move, added on the spreads (Mar) @ 227.41

Full year results 4th March.

ITV boosted by advertising hopes
The broadcaster was the biggest riser in the FTSE 100, surpassing Sky that gained on well-received results



By Ben Martin6:25PM GMT 04 Feb 2015 CommentsComment
Sky may have drawn attention with an impressive set of results, but investors were more tuned-in to ITV on Wednesday amid hopes the company will receive an advertising boost this year.
Shares in ITV climbed 8.1p to 230.6p, a 3.6pc gain that was the biggest in the FTSE 100, after Credit Suisse analysts told clients that a poll of two of the UK’s biggest media buyers, carried out by the broker this week, suggested that the free-to-air broadcaster would benefit from better than expected ad growth.
Net advertising revenues at ITV may increase by 11.8pc during the first quarter, boosted by the restrictions caused by May’s General Election, they forecast.
“Buyers highlight that a combination of strong pricing inflation and high demand means they are feeling confident about the TV market in 2015,” the analysts said.
Government spending has been “skewed” into the first quarter of the year “ahead of the purdah, the six week pre-election period during which government advertising is prohibited”, they noted.


The Rugby World Cup, which takes place over September and October and will be exclusively broadcast on ITV, is also expected to give the group a lift during the third and fourth quarters.
As a result, the analysts lifted their forecast for TV advertising growth this year from 3.1pc to 5.3pc, much higher than consensus expectations for 2.7pc.
The bullish assessment of ITV’s advertising prospects meant shares in the group outperformed those of pay-TV broadcaster Sky, which added 12½p, or 1.3pc, to 955½p in the wake if its first set of earnings since buying Sky Deutschland and Sky Italia in November.

Chris

You have the same spread as me (Mar) @ 227 , but mine was placed about a week ago, is it about to close the gap at 240 - 245, have i read the chart right

alders - Chart is looking very good, let's see what happens.

Profit taking at 231 ? and news of BT bid for EE takes BT out of companys who were in the frame to bid for ITV

Predicting which companies will be battling it out for Premier League rights can leave you looking a little stupid.

In 2012 - the last time the package of 154 matches was bid for - BT stormed, unannounced, into the market and gained the rights to 38 matches.

They would have liked many more and were only prevented from taking a greater share by Sky lodging an aggressive second round bid.

This time around, Discovery, the owners of Eurosport, has done little to dampen speculation that it might be in the running.

And it would be difficult to the point of impossible to imagine that BT and Sky will not lodge major bids in their attempt to become - or remain - the "home of football".

As the former chairman of ITV, Lord Grade, told me, there is little more valuable than football for telecommunication and broadcasting businesses.

And he should know, having led ITV's successful £160m bid for Champions League rights in 2008.

"The audience that top quality live football attracts is hugely valued by advertisers - the beer, the cars," he said.

"It would have been seen by the advertisers, our pay masters, if we had lost [the rights], that money would have gone to whoever won [them]. It was absolutely crucial, but not at any price."

"Not at any price" is the key phrase. It is expected that bids will top £4bn this time around.

And with bids binding and sealed, broadcasters have to aim as high as they feel they dare.

"It's agony," Lord Grade said of the process.

"With more and more competition, you don't know who is out there. BT must have taken Sky by surprise.

"You don't know what Google is up to, or Amazon. Anyone could be out there, it is terrifying.

"You have to keep your nerve and work out what your walk-away price is before you get into the auction."

The cost of winning rights has certainly been on a vertiginous path. In 2012, the price rose by 77%.

"There is no doubt that the inflation in sports rights has been quite dramatic over the last ten years," Lord Grade said.

"That really reflects the market.

"You pay more for the best, and the Premier League is the best.

"People are not going to overpay for things that are worth it. Sport delivers. It drives audiences, it is a banker like no other."

And therefore possibly better, Lord Grade says, than investing £20m in a drama that viewers might not like.

It would certainly be a big blow if Sky lost another significant part of its football empire.

Don't forget, BT is now also the owner of rights to the Champions League, a contract it took off Sky and ITV .

Jeremy Darroch, Sky's chief executive, has diversified Sky's broadcasting offer, investing heavily in drama in particular.

So, football is certainly not as essential as it was.

Nevertheless, investors will be as twitchy as Sky executives over the results of this year's bidding, the results of which are likely to be announced next week.

I'll leave the final word to Lord Grade: "Sky is very resilient, and it will reinvent itself, but how many years it would take if it lost all the Premier League I wouldn't like to say.

"It would be very seriously damaging."

Kamal Ahmed Article written by Kamal Ahmed
Kamal Ahmed

This part is interesting


Jeremy Darroch, Sky's chief executive, has diversified Sky's broadcasting offer, investing heavily in drama in particular.

So, football is certainly not as essential as it was.


So anyone who looses out of the bidding will maybe turn there attention to ITV

And this: "You don't know what Google is up to, or Amazon. Anyone could be out there, it is terrifying.

LATEST BROKER VIEWS

Date Broker New target Recomm.
10 Feb Barclays... 250.00 Overweight

Sold all my march spreads this morning @231 , didn't have time to place a trailing stop

Intraday all new time high.

My target this week , is for it to move into a 240 - 245 range

Broadcasters are, however, riding a recovery in advertising sales. ITV’s shares are at their highest since the dotcom boom, with ad revenues rising 6 per cent year-on-year in the nine months to September 2014.
In the short term, the fall in television audiences may actually increase the price of TV advertising. Brands want their ads to be seen a certain number of times on television; as it becomes more difficult to reach audiences, the cost of doing so rises.
Brands cannot switch their spending to Netflix, which does not show ads. The obvious option is to advertise more on online platforms — including ITV’s on-demand player and YouTube.
For the moment, “advertisers and media buyers just do not see [YouTube] as a substitute for mass market reach”, says Ian Whittaker, an analyst at Liberum.
“The big thing that prevents disruption is the content most people want to watch is produced by the big broadcasters,” says Mr Syfret.
Broadcasters are therefore investing in making their own programmes. Some are also exploring revenue streams that would hedge against a decline in revenues. ITV launched its first pay channel in more than a decade last year, and offers ad-free digital subscriptions.

ITV in exclusive talks to buy The Voice producer Talpa
ITV in talks to buy Dutch producer Talpa, which is owned by Big Brother creator John de Mol

By Andrew Trotman4:11PM GMT 27 Feb 2015 CommentsComment
ITV has revealed it is in talks to buy Talpa, the Dutch producer of singing competition The Voice.
The British media company, whose flagship shows include Downton Abbey and The X Factor, confirmed an approach for Talpa on Friday, adding that a deal "may or may not result in agreement of a transaction".
"ITV is continually assessing opportunities to grow and develop its business in line with its strategy, including the assessment of potential acquisitions," the company said in a statement.
"ITV confirms that it is in exclusive discussions regarding an acquisition of Talpa. A further announcement will be made when appropriate."
Talpa is wholly-owned by John de Mol, who created the hit reality show Big Brother.
ITV has been trying to grow its Studios business and create new shows in a bid to become less reliant on advertising revenues. It is currently in the process of relaunching Thunderbirds, the popular 1960s series that featured puppets.
Last year ITV bought an 80pc stake in Leftfield, which produces Real Housewives of New Jersey and Pawn Stars, for £212m. That figure could rise to £471m as it increases its stake in three and five years.
In 2013 it paid $25.65m for a 60pc stake in Cake Boss maker High Noon Entertainment, while a year earlier ITV snapped up Duck Dynasty maker Gurney Productions for £40m.
ITV has also bought Thinkfactory Media, the company behind Kevin Costner drama Hatfields & McCoys for $30m and Teen Wolf producer DiGa Vision in recent years.
ITV itself became the subject of takeover talk last year after US cable group Liberty Global bought a 6.4pc stake in the British company for £481m. The purchase pushed ITV's shares to a 14-year high.
However, in September Mike Fries, Liberty's chief executive, told an investor conference that the investment in ITV “does not portend anything with that company”.
ITV shares were flat at 227.3p on Friday.

Chris

I sent you a email

I did reply alders but there seems to be a problem sending it. I'm holding to answer your question 250p target.