Lindsay Charlton Quotations

For the last half-century ITV and the local papers in our region have stood alongside each other. Now we're in the same market very much in the same market.

What's pushing the BBC is they see this as an expansion of their public service remit. We see ITV Local, and broadband, as an opportunity to access new markets. My view of the BBC and its broadband plans are the same as newspapers'; that it is all very well, but there should be a proper market-interest test because they are a publicly funded broadcaster.

ITV has been proud of its regional services for 50 years, but until now we haven't had the delivery systems to provide a truly local service.

ITV1 can no longer guarantee an income stream, especially with other people in the digital marketplace.

The heart of ITV Local is public participation.

This is the first time in 50 years that an ITV region has provided news and feature programming 24 hours a day to the entire region. We're also giving our viewers the opportunity to create their own programming and we think there is an enormous appetite for this service. Friends and family can catch up with their own region wherever they are in the world thanks to the Internet and broadband technology.

The launch of ITV Local is part of the emerging broadband strategy within ITV.