The Rugby World Cup and dating show Love Island helped bolster viewing figures and advertising revenue for ITV over the past three months.
Highlights included four of the five highest-rating new dramas this year and a peak audience of 12.8m for the final of the Rugby World Cup between England and South Africa.
The broadcaster said it had reached its target of 30m registered users of its ITV Hub before schedule. Advertising revenue was up 1% in the third quarter, despite Brexit uncertainty forcing companies to adopt a cautious approach to spending.
The final quarter is expected to be either flat or up 1%, after falling 5% in the first half of the year.
Chief executive Carolyn McCall said: “ITV’s overall performance for the first nine months of 2019 was as we expected, and although the economic environment continues to be uncertain, we are making good progress in executing our strategy.
“We have successfully launched BritBox and are encouraged by the positive feedback received on the service so far. We have also agreed a distribution and marketing deal with BT and EE and a content partnership with Channel 4.
