ITV is threatening a blackout of its flagship channel in millions of homes unless cable operator Virgin Media hands over up to £80m a year, in a pivotal confrontation over dividing the spoils of the British television industry.
The pair have been locked in tense discussions since ITV issued Virgin Media with the demand over the summer.
The broadcaster threatened to shut down the feed of its main channel to 3.8 million cable television homes last month.
At the 11th hour ITV agreed to delay the decision until early next year, putting it top of the agenda for Dame Carolyn McCall, the incoming chief executive.
She is due to start work in early January.
Dame Carolyn will walk into a stand-off between ITV and its biggest shareholder, Liberty Global, which also owns Virgin Media.
The cable operator warned this weekend: “Neither Virgin Media nor our customers will be paying for channels that are meant to be free ... ITV signed up to a new ten-year licence in 2015 that didn’t include these fees – it’s now trying to go back on this deal to prop up its profits. ITV is already fully compensated for this through its prominent position, with the audience reach and additional advertising revenue this delivers.”
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