ITV saw its revenue soar by 28% for the nine months to the end of September.

External revenue was up at £2.4 bn, compared to £1.9 bn last year, and up 8 percent on 2019.

Carolyn McCall, ITV Chief Executive, said:

"By any standards ITV has had an outstanding nine months."

Total advertising revenue (TAR) for 2021 is expected to be the highest in ITV's history.

TAR was up 30% for the 9 months to the end of September 2021, with July up 68%, August up 24% and September up 16%, compared to the same period in 2020.

The total viewing hours for the period were down 5 per cent on 2020 at 11.6 billion hours, against 12.2 billion. But online viewing hours were up 39 per cent at 494 million, compared with 356 million in 2020.

ITV Studios revenue was up 32% at £1.2 billion (2020: £905 million) and up 6% compared to 2019.

McCall said: "We are becoming an increasingly scaled digital business. Our online viewing was up 39% in the nine months which, together with the roll out of Planet V, helped our video on demand

advertising (AVOD) revenue to climb 54%."

The results, she said, showed that ITV has successfully completed the first phase of its

'More Than TV' strategy and is 'accelerating the second phase of digital transformation as we

evolve our products, user experiences and ways of working'.

Punchline says: don't write off the old media just yet, especially when it adapts and incorporates the best of the new.