TV3 to offer deals with Communicorp

Increased collaboration between TV3 and Denis O'Brien's Communicorp is part of the TV station's plans for combating the increased competition that will accompany the arrival of UTV Ireland on to the market in the Republic.

TV3 commercial director Pat Kiely said the advertising sector is "clamouring for more collaboration across platforms" and that such a development is an important step in competing against "foreign competition".

He said he did not believe there is any market dominance issue involved in the TV station linking up with Communicorp and said the collaboration between TV3 and Communicorp was nothing compared with the market share held by RTÉ in the television and market sectors.

Largest owner

Mr O’Brien is Ireland’s largest owner of private media assets, being the biggest shareholder in the Independent News & Media group, and the owner of Communicorp, the radio business that includes Newstalk, 98FM and TodayFM, as well as other radio channels. TV3’s largest shareholder is private equity group Doughty Hanson.

Mr Kiely said a number of Communicorp’s channels shared the type of reach TV3 had and where appropriate and relevent it would be possible to discuss proposals with advertisers that would lead to advertisments on TV3 and a Communicorp channel.

He said TV3 and TodayFM had a broadly similar audience, something that would make collaboration between them attractive to advertisers.

“What we are talking about is providing some common platforms,” he said. “We are talking also about collaborating across some shows and some talent.”

New schedule

On Wednesday TV3 is due to announce its autumn/winter schedule which will include new programming to be carried by the broadcaster up to the period where UTV will begin its new service in the Republic.

A key element of TV3’s plan for fighting UTV and other “recent foreign arrivals”, is to continue to increase the amount of home-produced programming it will carry. Mr Kiely also said new household names scheduled to appear on TV3 will form part of the new scheduling to be announced.

The commercial TV station has issued a “six pillars of growth” strategy to advertisers that includes increased cooperation with Communicorp, new advertising technology and more home-grown programming. It is working on a new TV channel for 2016.

The deal with Communicorp will directly counter the use by UTV of collaboration with some of its radio interests in the Irish market. UTV is the largest operator of local radio in Ireland, with Q102 and FM104 among the stations it owns.