Sky agrees £1.6 billion deal to buy ITV broadcast unit

Sky has agreed terms to buy ITV’s broadcast and streaming unit for about £1.6 billion, a deal that would fold one of Britain’s biggest free-to-air television businesses into the Comcast-owned pay-TV group. The structure would transfer ITV’s Media and Entertainment division, including its linear channels and ITVX, while ITV Studios would remain a standalone production business and separately acquire Sky’s Love Productions, maker of The Great British Bake Off and The Piano.

The transaction would redraw the balance between pay television, streaming and free-to-air broadcasting in the United Kingdom. Sky already holds a powerful position in advertising: in its 2025 annual report, the company said an industry comparison report showed its share of linear TV advertising rose 11% in FY25 to 14%, even as the total linear market fell 11%. Folding ITV’s broadcast arm into that footprint would give Sky more reach across distribution and advertising at a time when traditional television viewers are migrating online.

For ITV, the numbers explain why a sale is attractive. Its 2025 annual report showed total advertising revenue fell 5% last year, even as ITVX viewing rose 16% and digital advertising revenue increased 12%. ITV also reported group external revenue of £3.511 billion, with ITV Studios revenue up 5% to £2.130 billion and digital revenue up 10% to £614 million. The broadcaster has been trying to offset weakness in linear television by leaning harder on streaming and production, and the reported deal would push that shift further, leaving content-making as the core of the company.

The market has been moving toward that point for months. Early discussions surfaced in November 2025, and by May 2026 negotiations had entered a final phase before lawyers began working through the terms. The sources familiar with the talks said the timing could still slip if legal complications emerged, but the direction of travel had become clear by June 24.

Regulatory scrutiny is now the biggest obstacle. The National Union of Journalists said the sale would split ITV in two and that any agreement would need approval from Ofcom and the Competition and Markets Authority. If cleared, the deal would deepen Comcast’s influence in British media, strengthen Sky’s hand in distribution and advertising, and leave ITV increasingly reliant on production businesses that can sell programming across borders rather than on domestic broadcast reach alone.