British media groups Granada and Carlton Communications are to align ITV with their ONdigital terrestrial digital platform in a further step towards total consolidation of UK commercial television.
The two main British commercial TV companies also said that ONdigital, which will be renamed ITV Digital under the new regime, added a net 75,000 subscribers in the first quarter for a total of 1.087 million.
The two groups want to leverage the ITV brand to compete with satellite digital provider BSkyB, which last reported 4.7 million subscribers and a churn rate of 9.8%.
The 'churn' or cancellation rate of ONdigital is running at around 22% per year, the companies said.
ONdigital, a multi-channel service launched two years ago which is transmitted through terrestrial airwaves, noted that a 22% churn rate was less than other pay TV platforms at the equivalent point of launch.
ONdigital has been facing some signal problems around Britain, according to analysts, but it expects coverage to reach 70% of the country within the next three months.
Some analysts say the restructuring could be a prelude to an eventual merger of Carlton and Granada once the British government clears the regulatory path for a united ITV over the next 18 months.
Carlton and Granada aim to save £20m sterling a year collectively in the second full year of the new organisation.
The new ITV will include the main channel ITV, ITV2, the newly named ITV Digital service, a new sports channel to be launched in August and ITV.com - a unified home for all ITV's online activities.
Stuart Prebble, chief executive of ONdigital, will be appointed chief executive of the enlarged ITV.
