The leading candidate to become the chief executive officer for Britain's ITV said he pulled himself out of contention. Simon Fox, who heads the British music and DVD retailer HMV, told his board he intends to stay with the company to complete a three-year restructuring plan, Variety reported Monday. ITV, public service network of British commercial television broadcasters, had been expected to name its new CEO last week as it publishes financial results, projecting a net loss of $117 million for the first six months of 2009, the industry trade publication said. The candidates reported still in contention include Pascal Cagni, Apple's head in Europe; Tony Ball, chairman of Kabel Deutschland; and John Cresswell, the former CEO of local satellite giant BSkyB and ITV's chief operating officer.

Britain's ITV television network announced plans Wednesday to eliminate 600 jobs and slash its programming budget, The Times of London said. The country's biggest commercial broadcaster also confirmed its intention to sell off its social networking Web site, Friends Reunited, as well as its directories business, Scoot. Current conditions in the advertising market are the most challenging I have experienced in over 30 years in U.K.

By Raymond Snoddy ON BROADCASTING Two commercial broadcasting minnows from the Celtic fringe, SMG and UTV, have just reported financial results, and guess what? They have done much better than their old mother ship ITV plc in recessionary times.

By Conor Dignam ON BROADCASTING The British television industry is again caught up in a blizzard of briefing notes, as communications' regulator Ofcom considers what public service broadcasting should look like beyond digital switchover.

By PETER JOHN MEIKLEM , MEDIA CORRESPONDENT THE Edinburgh International Television Festival being held next weekend features a special edition of Noel Edmonds's Sky gameshow Are You Smarter Than A 10-Year-Old.