Lord Alan Sugar warned ITV fans to 'watch out' over a 'sneaky' streaming practice and asked regulators to 'investigate'. The businessman, best known for hosting long-running BBC reality show The Apprentice and owning Tottenham Hotspur for a decade, wants to see a probe into how ITV advertises on its premium streaming service, ITVX.
Lord Sugar's complaint on social media
Lord Sugar — officially titled Baron Sugar of Clapton — took to social media to voice his frustration at an ITVX policy on Wednesday (July 21). He posted on X: “Watch out. I subscribed to ITVX, agreed to pay £5 a month, [to] not see adverts. “However their claim is very sneaky, instead of interrupting programmes with third party commercial adverts. They interrupt with promos of their own programmes. I think Ofcom should investigate.”
ITV's response
ITV has responded to the warning from Lord Sugar, pointing out 'licensing restrictions mean we’re required to show promos'. The company responded to Lord Sugar’s post on X a few hours later, posting: “Hi Lord Sugar! To bring you the best content, licensing restrictions mean we’re required to show promos on a small number of programmes on ITVX Premium, though standard ads are removed. “It's in our terms and conditions but we know it can be frustrating. Please direct message us if you'd like to chat further.”
ITVX launched in 2022, and was recently purchased by Sky in a huge, £1.6b deal that saw the broadcaster snap up Britain’s oldest commercial TV company’s broadcasting and streaming divisions. It is not clear if Ofcom will intervene after the exchange.
Lord Sugar's further comments
Even though Lord Sugar was fulsome in his praise of the ITV programme he was watching on Wednesday, he reiterated his complaint hours later. He said in another post on X: “Excellent series on ITV. The Twisted [Tale] of Amanda Knox. Superb acting by Grace Van Patten. The story [has] been dramatised for TV. It follows real events.” He added: “Good binge watch on ITVX, but adverts and promos will drive you nuts. Even if you pay the £5 a month.”
