UTV buoyed by record advertising income as profits soar
April 24th from Irish News:
The most popular television programme on UTV in 2021 was Oprah Winfrey’s bombshell interview with Prince Harry and Meghan, which was watched by 531,000 people in Northern Ireland.
UTV has reported a 21 per cent increase in its revenues, buoyed by record advertising income following the easing of Covid-19 restrictions.
The ITV-owned broadcaster also saw its retained profit soar almost four-fold from £1.1 million to £4.1 million.
The former Ulster Television, which now operates from Belfast Harbour’s City Quays 2 waterfront building, has filed accounts at Companies House for the 2021 calendar year.
During the period it generated total revenues of £28.9m compared to just shy of £24m the year before.
Some £27.3m of this was advertising revenue, while profit before tax was £6.6m against £1.9m in 2020.
UTV said the increase in revenue was largely driven by higher total advertising revenue (TAR).
They added: “2020 was significantly hit by the impacts of Covid-19 restrictions and uncertainty forcing companies to reduce or stop spending on advertising.
“But this picked up again in 2021 when restrictions were lifted, resulting in record TAR revenues.”
Among its operating expenses during the year, UTV spent £17.2m on programming and transmission.
Included in its wages and salaries of £4.8m are amounts relating to short-term contractors and freelancers of £l23,000 – up from £49,000 the year before.
According to Ofcom’s Media Nations report, UTV was the most popular source for news for people in Northern Ireland in 2021.
It said 47 per cent of people came to UTV for Northern Ireland news, compared to 38 per cent to BBC One
The top 10 most-watched TV programmes of the year in Northern Ireland included a UTV Live in January 2021, which was the most popular news programme and placed fifth overall on the list.
The most popular television programme on UTV in 2021 was Oprah Winfrey’s bombshell interview with Prince Harry and Meghan, which was watched by 531,000 people in Northern Ireland.
The top 10 most-watched TV programmes in Northern Ireland in 2021 across all channels were:
- Oprah with Meghan and Harry
- Line of Duty
- Bloodlands
- I’m a Celebrity … Get Me Out Of Here!
- UTV Live
- Prime Ministerial Statement
- BBC Newsline
- DIY SOS
- The Pembrokeshire Murders
- Euro 2020