ITV faces uncertain future post-poll

London: ITV, Britain’s biggest free-to-air commercial broadcaster, said it longer-term outlook was highly uncertain after the election, although the World Cup would boost ad revenue in the second quarter by 22%.

“The outlook for the latter part of 2010 and early 2011 is tough with more testing year-on-year comparators and uncertain market conditions post-election,” new chief executive Adam Crozier said.

Charles Stanley analyst Sam Hart said the 8% rebound in advertising revenue in the first quarter was also slightly disappointing, given the 15% slump a year ago.