The ITV programme was led by popular anchor Sir Trevor McDonald and followed immediately on from ratings-winning gameshow Who Wants to be a Millionaire?.
With an introduction from Millionaire鈥檚 presenter Chris Tarrant, ITV skipped the usual commercial break between the two shows in an effort to hang on to viewers and score a victory over the BBC鈥檚 Ten O鈥機lock News.
ITV scrapped News at Ten in March 1999 to allow it to broadcast films and dramas uninterrupted. However, the network was forced to reinstate the news to the 10pm slot by the Independent Television Commission after its audience share declined by 14%.
ITV is allowed to move the news show to 11pm up to twice a week to allow for films, dramas and sporting events broadcast continuously.
The BBC announced its plans to move its evening news bulletin from 9pm to 10pm last year in order to capitalise on the gap left by ITN鈥檚 News at Ten.