Channel 4 and Group M reach £500m two-year deal

 

An agreement was reached with more than a fortnight to spare and will be a relief to UKTV, whose ad sales are handled by Channel 4.
Both Channel 4 and Group M were said to be keen to avoid another trading row after the 2013 dispute, when talks collapsed in the run-up to Christmas and the WPP buying agency boycotted the broadcaster during the first two weeks in January.
As part of the new deal, it is thought that Group M and its content arm, Group M Entertainment, will supply Channel 4 with some advertiser-funded shows in a similar way to the previous deal.
Group M controls about 30 per cent of the TV ad market and spends an estimated £250 million a year with Channel 4 whose sales house has an annual turnover of nearly £1 billion.
Channel 4 and Group M declined to comment.
Back in 2013, Channel 4 sales director Jonathan Allan and Group M head of broadcast trading Mark Collins issued a joint statement after the "long and complex" negotiation to resolve their stalemate.