Britain's trade and industry secretary Patricia Hewitt will announce her decision on the controversial ITV merger in the week commencing October 6.
The planned marriage, between the network’s controlling duo Carlton Communications and Granada, is the subject of a 456-page report lodged last month with Hewitt by the Competition Commission. Her ruling was originally scheduled for this week.
But such is the complexity of the report and its recommended options that further time has been allowed – doubtless to accommodate rethinking and much scurrying between the interested parties.
The long-running saga, which kicked-off in October last year, has triggered a frenzy of speculation and entrail-reading by analysts and journos. None of whom, gentle reader, are any wiser than your office cleaner as to the final outcome.
Data sourced from: MediaGuardian.co.uk; additional content by WARC staff
