ITV announces on-demand first strategy for our young audiences commissioning
ITV commissioning seeks youth-skewing Scripted and Factual
Speaking at the Creative Cities Convention ITV's Head of Digital Channels and Acquisitions, Paul Mortimer, has today announced that he is looking for scripted titles and factual shows that appeal to young audiences, that he will commission for the ITV2 brand and ITV Hub.
Mortimer's role has adapted with the Media and Entertainment model coming in at ITV, and he now heads up commissioning for ITV Hub and for ITV's younger skewing brands, ITV2, ITVBe and CITV, with dual reporting to Rufus Radcliffe as Managing Director of the On Demand business unit, and Rosemary Newell, Content Director for Broadcast and On Demand divisions, under Kevin Lygo, Managing Director of Media and Entertainment.
Paul's area of responsibility is content commissioning for younger, lighter viewers. This means commissions that appeal to audiences who already do a large proportion of their viewing on demand and ITV will increasingly serve it to them in whatever way they want to access it, often premiering content on ITV Hub and making it available too via the ITV2/ITVBe/CITV channels.
On the effects of the pandemic, Mortimer said,
The pandemic has fast tracked the behaviour of audiences, more people want content on their own terms and at their own convenience, and younger audiences always get there first with these behaviours.
We need to adapt the way we commission for them. What we're doing with CITV, ITVBe and ITV2 is focusing on their respective audiences preference for on-demand content so in terms of commissioning its commissioning really for ITV Hub, under those brands.
Much of the content we commission and acquire for those brands will land on ITV Hub first. It's all about shifting the windowing pattern, making it more convenient for audiences. The channels aren't going anywhere by the way, they will still be around, and there will be exceptions to on-demand first, for example with shows like Love Island which is a daily update show, and one that is strong on both linear TV and Hub, or other entertainment shows, which dont lend themselves to boxsetting.
But more generally, once you are freed of the constraints of scheduling and programming a linear channel, it becomes really exciting in terms of the possibilities of the different genres we might venture into - such as factual programmes.
On ITV2, we have been very successful in becoming the No1 destination for young adults and we did that by really targeting them and focussing on funny, often irreverent, entertainment programming with a tone that ran through all the content. We prided ourselves that as a viewer you come in, lean back, have fun, and we programmed it so every programme led neatly into the next, it's all about inheritance, it's about 9pm junctions and watersheds. But guess what, on demand it's not and when you're free of those linear channel constraints there's other things you can do in programming terms
One of the reasons we feel with ITV2 we can move into factual is you don't need to have a line up of programmes that all share the same DNA, because the experience of going into a space like ITV Hub is one of exploration for the viewer so you go in and search, its not down to what the scheduler thinks you should be watching. We're doing it because we have the creative freedom to, but also in catering to the audiences' current tastes. We know that what the streamers have been providing, what YouTube provides, is a bit of everything, and in that the trick for us will be to also offer factual programming that deals with subjects that include and appeal to a younger audience .
Mortimer explained that he is working Sue Murphy, Head of Factual Entertainment at ITV and her team, to develop the new commissioning strategy.
Sue Murphy, ITV's Head of Factual Entertainment said:
Its an exciting time to be commissioning brand new, younger-skewing factual for ITV2 and Hub. A great opportunity for us and for Producers to find compelling stories that really matter to younger, light audiences. We want to encourage bold and innovative approaches to factual storytelling to satisfy the appetite for dramatic and visceral documentary.
Mortimer also revealed that they are looking at a true crime anthology series for this Autumn, with the spotlight on online crime, saying there are some fascinating stories that we have got or are seeking access to. We are looking to tell fresh and interesting stories not least as a means of raising a warning flag for younger audiences to some of the things that can happen in this space.
Paul also described how We're expanding what we are doing, we're investing a bit more, in terms of scripted, in drama and comedy for young audiences.
For the ITV2 brand, we're actually in pre-production with a drama which will land next January, which is really exciting as we haven't done an original fully funded UK drama in a while.
An announcement will be issued later this spring on ITV2's first new drama commission in nearly a decade, a brand new series aimed at teenagers.
Europe Stories
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
01/06/2026
January 6 2026, 05:30 (PST) Dolby Sets the New Standard for Premium Entertainment at CES 2026
Throughout the week, Dolby brings to life the latest innovatio...
02/05/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
01/05/2026
January 5 2026, 18:30 (PST) NBCUniversal's Peacock to Be First Streamer to ...
01/04/2026
January 4 2026, 18:00 (PST) DOLBY AND DOUYIN EMPOWER THE NEXT GENERATON OF CREATORS WITH DOLBY VISION
Douyin Users Can Now Create And Share Videos With Stun...
09/03/2026
Rohde & Schwarz and NETGEAR collaborate for next generation Wi-Fi 8 access point...
09/03/2026
Bill O'Reilly Announces New Weekly Podcast We'll Do It LIVE! We'll Do It LIVE!' A Bold, Fresh Presentation from Bill O'Reilly
New York...
09/03/2026
MOSOLF SE & Co. KG Relies on green.screen from Arvato Systems for Strategic Ener...
09/03/2026
A powerful new national initiative supporting people living with dementia launch...
06/03/2026
Ten years after its release, South African hip-hop artist Kwesta's DaKAR II is still making waves. With 51.8 million streams on Spotify, the album continues...
06/03/2026
06 Mar 2026
VEON and JazzWorld Advance Pakistan's Digital Financial Future ...
06/03/2026
Friday 6 March 2026
Teaser revealed for Saturday Night Live UKTurn on cookies to view this content. Go to Privacy options and select Accept All'.
Privacy...
06/03/2026
Discover how the F1 sound team turned a real Grand Prix into a cinematic experience.
Director Joseph Kosinski and his team worked directly with the Formula On...
06/03/2026
Arvato Systems Joins Initiative D21 e. V.
Shaping digital transformation together
Collaboration in Germanys largest network for the digital society
Membersh...
06/03/2026
The Trustworthy Accountability Group (TAG) is a global initiative dedicated to c...
06/03/2026
We are deeply saddened to hear the very sad news of the death of our friend and colleague, John McHugh. John was an exceptionally talented creative leader who s...
06/03/2026
First exclusive look at RT 's promo as Ireland prepare to take on Czechia
Every Moment, Every Generation
https://youtu.be/2ijo96EadLU
36 years after Geor...
05/03/2026
A little over a year ago, Spotify introduced the quarterly Creator Milestone Awa...
05/03/2026
Rohde & Schwarz enables rapid validation of next-gen Wi-Fi 8 networking platform...
05/03/2026
Rohde & Schwarz acquires Software Radio Systems (SRS), specialists in software d...
05/03/2026
5. March 2026 Radmila Stoltz
In March, Reimagining DAM 2026 will welcome an extraordinary group of industry leaders who are defining the next era of Digital...
05/03/2026
Celebrating 21 Years of the RT Choice Music Prize
RT Choice Music Prize
In association with IMRO and IRMA
RT Choice Music Prize Irish Album of the Year 2...
05/03/2026
Thursday 5 March 2026
Sky News secures ninth News Channel of the Year award as ...
05/03/2026
Thursday 5 March 2026
Sky Sports launches first ever nationwide creator competi...
05/03/2026
SAN JOSE, Calif. - March 5, 2026 - At the 2026 NAB Show, Harmonic (NASDAQ: HLIT)...
05/03/2026
Comscore and Yahoo DSP Partner to Advance CTV Political Advertising with Proximi...
04/03/2026
For many fans, a song's backstory can be just as compelling as the final pro...
04/03/2026
In 2006, Spotify was founded on the belief that technology could bring artists a...
04/03/2026
Spotify is back on the ground for the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, and we&#...
04/03/2026
Spotify had an energizing week in Sydney, Australia, filled with powerful conver...
04/03/2026
Earlier this year, we launched Directed By, a documentary-style series that pull...
04/03/2026
KT and Rohde & Schwarz to showcase AI-enhanced radio transmission performance In a joint 6G AI proof-of-concept demonstration, the CMX500 one-box tester from ...
04/03/2026
Luxembourg, 3 March 2026 - SES S.A. has today published its 2025 Annual Report, following the announcement of the company's full year financial results for ...
04/03/2026
Luxembourg, March 3, 2026 - SES, a leading space solutions company, along with I...
04/03/2026
04 Mar 2026
VEON Partners with GSMA Innovation Fund to Accelerate Digital Innov...
04/03/2026
04 Mar 2026
VEON's Beeline Uzbekistan and Rakuten Symphony Partner for Open...
04/03/2026
Wednesday 4 March 2026
Sky Sports unveils plans for 2026 Formula 1 coverage
Sky Sports is preparing for one of the most highly anticipated F1 seasons in recen...
03/03/2026
For many, finding time or headspace to pick up a book can feel out of reach, but...
03/03/2026
Rohde & Schwarz and Realtek demonstrate first test solution for Bluetooth LE Hi...
03/03/2026
eds3_5_jq(document).ready(function($) { $(#eds_sliderM519).chameleonSlider_2_1({ content_source:......
03/03/2026
Luxembourg, 2 March 2026 -- SES S.A. fully consolidates Intelsat from 17 July 2025 and announces financial results for the year ended 31 December 2025
FY25 Pe...
03/03/2026
RT is proud to support a rich and diverse programme of arts and cultural events taking place across Ireland throughout March 2026. This month brings a remarkab...
03/03/2026
03 Mar 2026
VEON and MeetKai Expand Collaboration to Explore Sovereign AI Infra...
03/03/2026
Tuesday 3 March 2026
Sky releases official trailer for The Miniature Wife, a Sk...
03/03/2026
Tuesday 3 March 2026
Ryan Reynolds and Rob Mac land first ever live commentary ...
03/03/2026
Tuesday 3 March 2026
The Dyers' Caravan Park reopens for a second season after a hit launch on Sky
The Dyers' Caravan Park
JPEG (510KB)
Sky books a ...
03/03/2026
Harmonic's cOS Virtualized Broadband Platform Simplifies Network Operations, Lowers Hardware Dependency and Enables Seamless DOCSIS and Fiber Growth SAN JO...
03/03/2026
Comscore to Announce Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2025 Financial ResultsRESTON, VA, March 3, 2026 Comscore, Inc. (Nasdaq: SCOR), a trusted partner for plannin...
03/03/2026
Self-taught on iMovie, Hanagami transitioned to Final Cut Pro in 2009, discovering that professional tools could give him full creative control over how his wor...
ITV announces on-demand first strategy for our young audiences commissioning
