If the expectations are met, it will be the sixth consecutive rise in advertising revenues for the network, which has been hard hit by the advertising downturn and falling primetime audiences.
Only a week ago, Credit Suisse First Boston said it was cutting the TV network's forecast to 1% from 6% for the year to September 2003 because the expected advertising recovery was delayed, and ITV had lost audience share.
However, this morning's news had a mixed impact on the share prices of the two major ITV operating companies, Granada and Carlton Communications. Shares in Granada were up by 0.6% at 82p when the market opened, while Carlton was down by 1.51% to trade at 145.75p.
The companies, still smarting over the failure of ITV Digital, recently announced they would combine a number of operations, including marketing and programming, in an attempt to improve their financial performance and make them more attractive to advertisers.
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