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Wednesday, August 06, 2008, 13:56
The channel's executive chairman hit out at "a whole host of nanny state regulation" which would be swept away if ITV renounced its status as a public service broadcaster (PSB).
"I think we have a future as a public service broadcaster provided that we can get Ofcom and the Government to realise very, very quickly that we cannot afford to pay more than the licence and the PSB status is worth," he said.
"Ofcom estimates that to be around £45 million a year. It's presently costing us over £220 million a year."
Mr Grade insisted ITV was already meeting its public service obligations with the more than £1 billion a year it invested in UK productions.
Speaking on the BBC Radio 4 Today programme, he added: "It's not a threat, it's a realistic scenario."
Meanwhile the broadcaster said that underlying profits for the half year to June 30 slumped 28 per cent as it battled an advertising slowdown. The group's adjusted pre-tax profits came in at £91 million for the six-month period, compared with £127 million a year ago.
Mr Grade said he would be maintaining investment in programming, and vowed that a strong autumn schedule - including a return for hits such as I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here! - would see the the company outperform the market.
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