Grade slams junk food ad ban

ITV executive chairman Michael Grade raged at Ofcom's restrictions on junk food advertising at a media conference in London yesterday (27 February), calling it 'nonsense.'

ITV executive chairman Michael Grade raged at Ofcom's restrictions on junk food advertising at a media conference in London yesterday (27 February), calling it 'nonsense.'

'There is common cause between broadcasters and advertisers to wean the government off the idea that the answer to problems is restricting advertising,' Grade said. 'Thinking that will change the way people behave is nonsense. Either ban the products or get out of our lives!'

In one of his first public appearances since switching from the BBC to ITV in November, Grade was speaking on a panel of TV chief executives at a seminar on 'The Third Age of Television' put on by commercial TV marketing body Thinkbox at the Roundhouse in London's Camden.

The ITV chief joined Channel 4's Andy Duncan and Five's Jane Lighting in responding to questions from delegates put by moderator Kirsty Young.

Asked if changing technology meant TV scheduling was a thing of the past, Grade said: 'Scheduling is now just the beginning. It's as crucial as ever but it's a shop window.'

He said the consumer would decide how it wants to view programs. 'They will enjoy a range of choices and they will tell us. What excites me is that it extends the value chain of what we do best, which is to create content. The internet will never compete with what we do, it's an add-on.'

Speaking about digital rights, the ITV chief said it was crucial to protect people's copyright. 'We must be trusted, that's absolutely essential. We cannot afford to mess up digital rights,' Grade said. 'If you're in the business of publishing, which we are, you must scrutinize people's rights and police that with real vigour.'

Grade joined Lighting and Duncan in asserting that commercial TV remained a robust and vital enterprise. 'We've got to put the story of how potent TV is as a marketing weapon at the centre of the radar,' he said. ' We have a hell of a good story to tell and we don't do a good enough job of telling it.'

Asked what he'd like to see in the next three years, Grade replied: 'I'd like to wake up one morning to find everyone is digital enabled and has high-definition. That would be wonderful.'