Speaking at a private lunch meeting yesterday to opinion formers, Hodgson said that although the communications bill calls for a review of ownership in the first three years, "it should be an earlier priority".
"But next year is the time to make such a decision, not now. Carlton and Granada aim to merge, and some think they will sell. At its most extreme, this time next year Sky could own Five and Berlusconi ITV. Perhaps not, but big decisions are usually best made in possession of all the facts. We might need protection for a second UK source of TV news," Hodgson said.
ITN is currently owned by Granada, Carlton Communications, Daily Mail & General Trust, Reuters and United Business Media, which each hold the maximum 20% stake allowed by current regulations.
The government is set to lift that limit to allow Carlton and Granada to increase their stake to 40% when they merge. However, the companies are lobbying the government to let them take full control of the service.
As well as supplying ITV with news, ITN also has contracts to supply Channel 4 and Five. However, Five is understood to be concerned that if ITV takes control of the news service it would be its lowest priority, because resources would be stretched to meet all ITN's contracts. There have been suggestions that Five may opt for a news service from Sky News, which already provides it with an hour-long simulcast of Sky News early in the morning.
ITN's ownership structure was set up in the 1990 Broadcast Act to allow the service to benefit from investment from outside companies. It was believed that the company was being hindered by disagreements among ITV shareholders.
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