ITV PLC (LSE:LON:ITV) hit total advertising revenue (TAR) targets and expects ITV Studios to exceed its 2019 performance as its streaming service is set to launch in the fourth quarter.
ITVX is a free-to-air service which will generate income from advertising, with ITV confident it will deliver £750mln in digital revenues by 2026, according to a statement.
Total external revenues were up 8% to £1.6bn in the six months to 30 June, with TAR up 5% and in line with previous guidance.
The group expects the FIFA World Cup, set to take place in November and December this year, to help with TAR despite the macroeconomic and geopolitical uncertainty.
Its production business, ITV studios, is on track to exceed 2019 revenues for the full year and will “continues to grow ahead of the market,” which it expects will advance by 3% in the medium term.
According to its statement, ITV Studios and media and entertainment were “ahead of expectations,” with revenues for the former up 16% to £927mln and 4% to £1.06bn for the latter.
Studios saw an increase in the number of hours scripted for its TV shows, up by 82%, with revenues from its streaming platforms growing to 19% from 16%.
Media and entertainment was boosted by “the best ever digital viewing,” with 814mln streams on ITV Hub in the first six months, up 8% year on year.
FTSE 100 ITV also reported a statutory profit before tax increase to £219mln from £133mln compared to the same period 12 months prior.
The statement adds that ITV’s balance sheet is “robust” to allow for investment and returns to shareholders.
ITV also declared an interim dividend of 1.7p, with it committed to paying a total dividend of 5p for the full year.
"ITV has recorded a strong performance across the business with both our Studios and Media & Entertainment divisions performing better in the first half than we expected at the beginning of the year,” said chief executive Carolyn McCall.