ITV4
Country | United Kingdom |
---|---|
Programming | |
Picture format | 1080i HDTV (downscaled to 16:9 576i for the SDTV feed) |
Timeshift service | ITV4 +1 |
Ownership | |
Owner | ITV Digital Channels (ITV plc) |
Sister channels | ITV ITV2 ITV3 ITVBe CITV |
History | |
Launched | 1 November 2005 |
Replaced | ITV News Channel |
Links | |
Website | www |
Availability | |
Terrestrial | |
Freeview | Channel 26 Channel 60 (+1) |
Streaming media | |
ITV Hub | Watch live (UK only) |
TVPlayer | Watch live (UK only) |
Sky Go | Watch live (UK only) |
Virgin TV Go | Watch live (UK only) Watch live (Ireland only) |
ITV4 is a British free-to-air television channel which was launched on 1 November 2005. It is owned by ITV Digital Channels, a division of ITV plc, and is part of the ITV network. The channel has a line-up that consists of sports, police shows, cult classic films[1] such as James Bond, US comedies and dramas, and classic ITV action series of the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s.
History
It was expected that ITV4 would replace the existing Men & Motors channel (which was replaced by ITV HD) in the same way Granada Plus was rebranded into ITV3, until ITV plc stated that the two channels would run alongside each other, forcing the ITV News Channel on Freeview to timeshare with ITV4. ITV replaced the failing News Channel with CITV. Both channels were on Freeview until ITV plc took Men & Motors off Freeview (although it remained on other platforms for some time until April 2010) and replaced it with the live quiz channel ITV Play. Some programming from Men & Motors was transferred to ITV4. ITV4 was the first channel to use the new on-screen look that was rolled out across the rest of ITV plc's channels on 16 January 2006. Red Bee Media designed the new logos and presentation for the entire corporation that saw the end of the yellow and blue squared look designed for ITV, ITV2 and the cube look for ITV3. An ITV 2005 interim results presentation revealed that an old style logo was designed for the channel but was never used on air.[2]
The channel initially broadcast early in the evenings, but had its hours extended to cover daytime programming in February 2008, following previous trials where CITV handed over to ITV4 early in the weekends, closing at 12.30pm instead of the usual 6pm handover.
ITV4 was launched on UPC Ireland in Ireland on 4 January 2010, marking the first time the channel has been officially available in the country. The channel had already been (and remains) available to Irish viewers on free-to-air satellite for some time, but it has not been listed in the Sky electronic programme guide since its removal on 25 January 2006. On 1 April 2011, ITV4 was removed from UPC Ireland along with ITV2 and ITV3 due to the expiry of a carriage agreement between UPC and ITV.[3] UPC Ireland claim that ITV is not in a position to renegotiate the deal because ITV had struck a deal with another channel provider to provide it with exclusive rights to air certain content from the channels. Conversely, UPC Ireland also claims to have been in discussions right up to the last moment in order to continue broadcasting the channels.[4] ITV2, ITV3 and ITV4 were restored to the UPC Ireland line-up on 20 December 2011. TV3 and its sister channel 3e already hold carriage agreement to air certain ITV content within the Republic of Ireland,[5] alternatively UTV is available within the Republic. ITV2 is available along with ITV3 and ITV4 within Switzerland, all three channels are available on SwisscomTV and UPC Cablecom. ITV4 is registered to broadcast within the European Union/EEA through ALIA in Luxembourg.[6][7]
Launch
ITV4's launch night was on Freeview channel 30. Although it was broadcast on the Astra 2D satellite used by Sky, so users could manually tune it in. It was launched on Sky channel 120, after ITV2 and ITV3 in the listings, on 7 November. Prior to this date, some sporting content was simulcast on Men & Motors in an ITV4 on M&M strand. It officially launched with Real Betis v Chelsea in the UEFA Champions League (Liverpool v Anderlecht was on ITV1 at the same time), the UKTV premiere of Kojak, and the film Carlito's Way.
Subsidiary channels
ITV4 +1
In late October 2008, it was announced that a timeshifted (+1) version of ITV4 would be launched by the end of the year.[8] ITV4 +1 was launched on Sky on 1 December 2008, on Freesat on 9 December 2008 and on Virgin Media on 25 March 2010. It was removed from Sky on 11 January 2011, due to the launch of ITV1 +1 (now known as ITV +1) taking up space on the EPG; the channel continued to be available on Freesat and Virgin. The channel was restored on 1 June 2012.
ITV4 HD
A high-definition simulcast of ITV4, ITV4 HD, was launched on 15 November 2010 on Sky.[9][10] The channel was initially available through Sky's pay subscription service in a non-exclusive deal,[11][12] before being added to Virgin Media's service on 14 March 2013.[13] ITV4 HD's high definition content includes films, and sports events which currently include British Touring Car Championship,[14] Tour de France, horse racing, snooker, darts (including the UK Open and the Players Championship Finals) and French Open tennis as well as highlights of other sporting events and content from the ITV Sport archives.
Branding
2013 rebranding
In line with the corporate rebranding of ITV, ITV4 received a new look on 14 January 2013. The channel received a "slate grey" logo and became the "home of sport and cult classics". Channel promotion includes pub factoids and idents featuring viewer nominated "dreams come true".[15]
Programming
Current programming
|
Former programming
- Fierce
- Fifth Gear (moved to Discovery+)
- Hell on Wheels
- Take the Tower (2018)
- Football Genius (2018)
- The New Avengers
- Nitro Circus
- Quincy, M.E.
- Speed Freaks (2019)
- Space Precinct
- Storage Wars
- Storage Wars: New York
- Storage Wars: Texas
Sports coverage
Before ITV4's launch in 2005, ITV's digital sports coverage was on ITV2, but after its launch all sports coverage moved to ITV4. In its first week, it had coverage of the aforementioned Real Betis v Chelsea game in the UEFA Champions League, and also had coverage of Middlesbrough v Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk in the UEFA Cup on the Thursday, and Amir Khan's fight against Steve Gethin from the Braehead Arena in Glasgow on the Saturday.
Current coverage
Football
- England National Team Highlights and Re-runs (2008–present, Nations League and in-season friendlies live, plus highlights also on Sky Sports)
- FA Cup Live & Replays (2008–2014 & 2022-present) [31]
- England Women's Team Qualifiers & Friendlies (2021-present) [32]
- Arnold Clark Cup (2022-present) [33]
- FIFA World Cup (2006-present: Extra group games) [34]
- UEFA European Championship (2008-present: Extra group games) [35]
- EFL Championship, League One, League Two & EFL Cup Highlights (2022-present: highlights on itv4 and repeated on itv) [36]
Cycling
- Tour de France (from 2002 until at least 2019,[37][38][39] shared with Eurosport)
- Tour de Yorkshire
- Vuelta a España (2011–present)
- Critérium du Dauphiné[39]
- Critérium International[39]
- Liège–Bastogne–Liège[39]
- Paris–Roubaix[39]
- Tour Series cycling
- Tour of Britain
- Revolution Series
Rugby union
- Women's Rugby World Cup
- Under 20s Rugby World Cup
- Rugby World Cup
- Aviva Premiership Highlights (2008–2017 & 2022 present: highlights on itv4 and repeated on itv) [40]
- Aviva Premiership Live Coverage including Premiership Final (2022-present) [41]
Horse racing
- Weekly Saturday Afternoon Horse Racing, 40 days of big meetings such as Grand National on ITV with 60 days of horse racing on ITV4 (2017–present)
Motorsport
- Isle of Man TT (from 2009–present)
- British Touring Car Championship (from 2005–present, live until 2026 with highlights on ITV)
- British Superbikes (live from 2005 to 2007 and highlights from 2009–present, live on British Eurosport)
- Superbike World Championship (highlights from 2016–present, live on British Eurosport)
- MotoGP (Live in 2021 from the French Round and highlights from 2014 to 2016, 2021–present)
- World Rally Championship (highlights from 2006–2008, 2013–2015, 2020-present)
- Motorsport UK (highlights from 2005–present)
- Goodwood Festival of Speed (highlights on ITV, shared with Sky Sports F1)
- BRDC Formula 3 Highlights[42]
Darts
- European Championship (2008, 2011, 2013–present)[43]
- Players Championship Finals (2009–2010, 2011–present)
- The Masters (2013–present: PDC tournament, not to be confused with the BDO Winmau World Masters with ITV covered from 1974 to 1988)
- UK Open (2014–present, previously on Sky Sports)
- World Series of Darts Finals (2015–present)
- World Series of Darts (6 tournaments with live or delayed coverage on ITV4 from 2015–present)
Snooker
- Champion of Champions (2013–present)
- World Grand Prix (2015–present)
- Players Championship Grand Finals (2016–present)
Boxing
- The Big Fight Live (2005–2010 & 2017–present, selected fights on ITV4 with others on ITV Box Office)
- Premier Boxing Champions (2019–present, selected fights on ITV4 and more fights on ITV Box Office)
Wrestling
- AEW Dynamite (2019–present, full broadcast on ITV4 on Friday nights, and highlights on ITV)[44]
- AEW Rampage (2021–present, full broadcast on ITV4 on Tuesday nights, and highlights on ITV)
Former coverage
Football
- International Friendlies, Qualifiers and Play-Offs (2010–2018, from 2014 to 2018 at least one qualifier live per matchday not involving a UK Home Nation, shared with Sky Sports)
- Scotland, Wales & Northern Ireland National Team Highlights (2014–2018, live on Sky Sports and highlights on BBC NI, BBC Scotland & BBC Wales)
- UEFA Champions League (2nd exclusive match on ITV4 from 2005 to 2008 and delayed matches and highlights from 2008 to 2018, now on BT Sport)
- UEFA Europa League (highlights from 2015 to 2018, live on BT Sport)[45]
- UEFA Super Cup Highlights (2008–2014, on ITV4 if a British club is involved & highlights from 2015 to 2018)
- FA Cup Replays (2009–2010, now on BBC Sport)
- FA Community Shield Highlights (2008–2014, now on BT Sport & BBC Sport)
- FA Trophy Final (2009, now on BT Sport)
- 2006 FIFA World Cup (live and highlights)
- Euro 2008 (live and highlights)
- 2010 FIFA World Cup (live and highlights)
- Euro 2012 (live and highlights)
- World Cup (Brazil 2014) (live and highlights, all major tournaments alongside BBC Sport)
- European Championships (France 2016) (live on BBC Sport & ITV Sport, selected games & highlights on ITV4)
- African Cup of Nations (2012–2015, live coverage & highlights. Now on Eurosport)
- Bundesliga (weekly highlights from 2012 to 2017)
- La Liga (2019)[46][47]
Boat race
- The Boat Race (highlights from 2006 to 2009, now on BBC Sport)
Boxing
- Frank Warren fights (2006–2008, now on BoxNation and BT Sport)
- Hennessey fights (2008–2010)
- Undercard of main fight (usually shown on ITV4 with main event on ITV with all fights from 2008 to 2010 on ITV4)
- Carl Frampton Live: Undercard live on ITV4, Frampton Live on ITV & highlights on ITV4
Cricket
- Ashes Cricket (highlights from 2010 to 2011)
- IPL Cricket (2010–2014, now on BT Sport)
- Cricket World Cup Highlights (2015, live on Sky Sports with highlights on ITV & ITV4)
Snooker
- Power Snooker (2010–2011)
- World Open (2013)
- Snooker Shoot Out (2016–2018, now on Eurosport)
Darts
- Grand Slam of Darts (2007–2010, now on Sky Sports)
Motorsport
- Formula One (highlights and re-runs from 2006 to 2008, now on Channel 4 and Sky Sports F1)
- GP2 Series (live and highlights from 2006 to 2008, now on Sky Sports F1)
- DTM (highlights from 2012–)
- Formula E (2014–2016, now on BBC, Quest, and Eurosport)
Cycling
- Tour of California (2011)
Rugby Union
- LV Cup Highlights (2010–2017, live on Sky Sports)
- Heineken Cup Highlights (2010–2014, live on Sky Sports, which ended when it became European Champions Cup)
Tennis
- Masters Tennis from the Royal Albert Hall (2010–2014)
- French Open (from 2012–2021, lost rights to Eurosport)[48]
History of ITV4 on air identity
-
Proposed ITV4 logo, never used
-
First ITV4 logo, used from 1 November 2005 to 13 January 2013
-
Second and current ITV4 logo used since 14 January 2013
References
- ^ https://www.itvmedia.co.uk/advertising-on-itv/airtime/commercial-break-advertising/teleshopping-advertising
- ^ "ITV plc 2005 Interim Results" (PDF). ITV plc. Archived from the original (PDF) on 14 December 2005. Retrieved 10 December 2021.
- ^ "Bad news for fans of Poirot: UPC is losing ITV2, 3 and 4". Business ETC. 31 March 2011. Archived from the original on 29 July 2013. Retrieved 29 June 2014.
- ^ "ITV2, ITV3, & ITV4 channels are no longer available". UPC Ireland. 1 April 2011. Archived from the original on 6 October 2015.
- ^ "UPC lose ITV's digital channels". TheAirwaves. 1 April 2011. Archived from the original on 6 September 2011.
- ^ "Supervisory activities". 7 November 2021. Archived from the original on 27 June 2021. Retrieved 6 April 2021.
- ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 20 March 2021. Retrieved 6 April 2021.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ "Itv4 +1 Live Stream". Live TV Online. 31 May 2012. Archived from the original on 19 September 2016. Retrieved 29 June 2014.
- ^ "ITV plc 2010 Interim Results & Sky deal". ITV plc. 3 August 2010. Archived from the original on 12 July 2014. Retrieved 29 June 2014.
- ^ Laughlin, Andrew (15 November 2010). "ITV3 HD and ITV4 HD go live on Sky". Tech News. Digital Spy. Archived from the original on 10 August 2014. Retrieved 29 June 2014.
- ^ Sweney, Mark (2 March 2011). "ITV earmarks £12m to hire new talent to break international hit drought". The Guardian. London. Archived from the original on 28 June 2021. Retrieved 29 June 2014.
- ^ Sweney, Mark (3 August 2010). "ITV unveils pay-TV push". The Guardian. London. Archived from the original on 28 June 2021. Retrieved 29 June 2014.
- ^ "Virgin Media introduces HDelightful ITV channels". Virgin Media. 14 March 2013. Archived from the original on 27 September 2013. Retrieved 14 March 2013.
- ^ Laughlin, Andrew (11 October 2010). "ITV to air British Touring Cars in HD". Media News. Digital Spy. Archived from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 29 June 2014.
- ^ Laughlin, Andrew (16 November 2012). "ITV1 to become 'ITV' in major corporate rebrand". Digital Spy. Archived from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 9 December 2012.
- ^ "Auto Mundial – Watch episodes". Archived from the original on 21 October 2021. Retrieved 21 October 2021.
- ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 28 November 2018. Retrieved 27 November 2021.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ "Bear's Mission with... – Bear and Nicola Adams' Wild Adventure". Archived from the original on 21 October 2021. Retrieved 21 October 2021.
- ^ "The Big Match Revisited – Series 6 – Episode 7". Archived from the original on 21 October 2021. Retrieved 21 October 2021.
- ^ "Car Crash Global: Caught on Camera – Series 2 – Episode 4". Archived from the original on 21 October 2021. Retrieved 21 October 2021.
- ^ "The Car Years – 1970". Archived from the original on 21 October 2021. Retrieved 21 October 2021.
- ^ "The Chase Celebrity Special – Series 5 – Episode 8". Archived from the original on 21 October 2021. Retrieved 21 October 2021.
- ^ "Extreme Salvage Squad Season 1". Archived from the original on 21 October 2021. Retrieved 21 October 2021.
- ^ "ITV orders another three years of Goodwood from AMW". Televisual. 30 July 2018.
- ^ "Watch ITV4 live". Archived from the original on 21 October 2021. Retrieved 21 October 2021.
- ^ "ITV Sport Stories – Watch episodes". Archived from the original on 21 October 2021. Retrieved 21 October 2021.
- ^ "Junk & Disorderly". Archived from the original on 21 October 2021. Retrieved 21 October 2021.
- ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 21 October 2021. Retrieved 21 October 2021.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ "The Motorbike Show". Archived from the original on 21 October 2021. Retrieved 21 October 2021.
- ^ "When English Football Ruled Europe – Watch episodes". Archived from the original on 21 October 2021. Retrieved 21 October 2021.
- ^ https://www.sportspromedia.com/news/itv-fa-cup-tv-rights-deal-free-to-air-2021-bbc-bt-sport-man-city-watford/
- ^ https://www.itv.com/football/articles/itv-to-become-home-of-england-womens-football-team
- ^ https://www.itv.com/football/articles/itv-to-show-inaugural-arnold-clark-cup-featuring-lionesses
- ^ https://www.itv.com/news/update/2014-06-08/itv-and-bbc-sign-fifa-world-cup-deal-for-2018-and-2022/
- ^ https://www.uefa.com/uefaeuro-2020/news/0253-0d80bb5bf72b-31e63c8834d6-1000--bbc-and-itv-gain-euro-2016-and-2020-rights/
- ^ https://www.itv.com/football/articles/itv-to-broadcast-efl-highlights-from-next-season
- ^ Jessica Hodgson (30 July 2001). "ITV pays £5m for Tour de France". The Guardian. London. Archived from the original on 6 July 2018. Retrieved 23 July 2009.
- ^ Kate McMahon (2008). "ITV4 secures Tour De France to 2013". Broadcast Now. Archived from the original on 2 October 2018. Retrieved 23 July 2009.
- ^ a b c d e "ITV lands new Tour de France deal". itv.com. 9 September 2013. Archived from the original on 2 July 2021. Retrieved 27 February 2014.
- ^ https://www.premiershiprugby.com/news/premiership-rugby-seals-new-partnership-with-itv-sport
- ^ https://www.premiershiprugby.com/news/premiership-rugby-seals-new-partnership-with-itv-sport
- ^ "Television Coverage". BRDC Formula 4. Archived from the original on 19 October 2013. Retrieved 27 February 2014.
- ^ "European Championship On ITV4". PDC. 24 June 2011. Archived from the original on 27 June 2011. Retrieved 24 June 2011.
- ^ AEW ANNOUNCES UK BROADCAST DETAILS, PRE-SHOW FOR DOUBLE OR NOTHINGArchived 18 May 2019 at the Wayback Machine F4wonline. 8 May 2019. Retrieved 8 May 2019.
- ^ Sweney, Mark (17 October 2011). "ITV snatches Europa League from Channel 5". The Guardian. London. Archived from the original on 3 June 2021. Retrieved 30 June 2014.
- ^ Watch La Liga live on ITV4 every week until the end of the season starting with Levante's clash with giants Real Madrid Archived 2 July 2021 at the Wayback Machine ITV. 22 February 2019. Retrieved 22 February 2019.
- ^ La Liga: ITV win rights to air three live matches of new season Archived 25 February 2021 at the Wayback Machine BBC Sport. 15 August 2019. Retrieved 16 August 2019.
- ^ https://sport-onthebox.com/2021/06/11/eurosport-discovery-roland-garros-french-open-tennis-uk-tv-rights-2022-2026/