ITV Digital faces closure if Football League rejects £50m offer

LONDON - ITV bosses have told the Football League that it will close ITV Digital if it is forced to pay the full £180m for the next two years of television rights.

ITV Digital offered to pay £50m for the next two years, when Granada chairman Charles Allen and Carlton Communications chief executive Gerry Murphy met with David Burns, chief executive of the Football League, last week.

It had originally agreed to pay £315m for three years' rights to show first division football matches on its ITV Sport channel.

The Football League is to present the new ITV Digital offer to its 72 member clubs tomorrow. However, the league fears that the reduced offer may lead to the closure of some of its smaller clubs, which have already upped players' salaries on the basis of increased future revenues.

Granada and Carlton recently appointed Deloitte & Touche to look at restructuring the digital broadcasting joint venture to help it survive.

Both companies are under pressure from shareholders to stop spending on ITV Digital, which has already cost some £800m and will require a further £300m before it breaks even.

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