When did the network ITV begin?
History of ITV
By 1999, four groups owned the majority of the ITV franchises: Granada Television, Carlton Television, United News and Media (UNM) and the Scottish Media Group (SMG), with Ulster Television, Channel Television and Border Television remaining independent. From here, the companies further consolidated their channels. In November 1999 a new, hearts-based on-air look was introduced and adopted by the Granada Television and UNM regions, along with Border Television and Channel Television. This look reduced regional identity to a design at the conclusion of the ident: the majority of the ident was generic to all the stations. Two months before, in September 1999, Carlton Television dropped the Central Independent Television and Westcountry Television names from their on-air presentation, instead branding these regions as Carlton Television, and using the same presentation for all three regions. In the summer of 2000, following an unsuccessful attempt to merge with Carlton Television, UNM sold its three stations - Meridian Broadcasting, Anglia Television and HTV - to Granada Television. However, Granada Television had to sell the broadcasting arm of HTV to Carlton Television to comply with the then-current regulatory requirements. In July 2001, Granada Television acquired Border Television from Capital Radio Group and moved presentation and play-out facilities to Leeds.