British broadcasting giant ITV announced on Monday that it has agreed to sell its entire Media & Entertainment division to Comcast-owned Sky for up to £1.6 billion ($2.13 billion). The blockbuster transaction marks a massive consolidation in the UK television market, uniting the country’s largest free-to-air commercial network with its dominant pay-TV provider to counter the market dominance of American streaming giants.
Under the terms of the agreement, ITV will receive an initial base consideration of £1.2 billion in cash upon completion. The deal also includes an asset swap where Sky transfers full ownership of Love Productions—the prominent production company behind The Great British Bake Off and The Piano, valued at £200 million—to ITV. Furthermore, ITV stands to receive an additional deferred cash earn-out of up to £200 million, contingent on the broadcasting unit hitting specific advertising revenue targets in the 2027 financial year.
The transaction marks a fundamental structural pivot for ITV, which will divest its legacy broadcast channels, the ITVX streaming platform, and its linear ad business. Following the carve-out, the company will transition into a standalone, “pure-play” global content creation business under its ITV Studios banner, which will remain listed on the London Stock Exchange. To ensure long-term stability, Sky has committed to a minimum spend of £2.1 billion with ITV Studios between 2028 and 2032 to supply premium programming across the combined network. ITV stated it intends to return approximately £950 million of the transaction’s cash proceeds directly to its shareholders.
Sky Group Chief Executive Dana Strong hailed the acquisition as a “defining moment” for British media, noting that fusing the platforms will allow the combined entity to optimize scale against platforms like Netflix, YouTube, and Disney+. Leaders from both companies confirmed that ITV and Sky will maintain their respective consumer branding, while ITV News and Sky News will continue to operate with strictly independent editorial frameworks. The landmark deal remains subject to customary regulatory scrutiny from Ofcom and the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), with full completion projected for the second half of 2027.
