Perdita
13-10-2008, 13:10
ITV chief Michael Grade has asked the channel's stars to take a pay cut.
Speaking to The Sunday Times, Grade insisted that high-earning talent such as Simon Cowell need to reduce their pay to "share the pain" following ITV's decision to axe 1,000 jobs.
Grade said ITV has to find ways to cut costs due to the economic crisis: "When there is a downturn of this severity, everybody has got to share the pain - the talent, the independent producers, the in-house producers.
"When Tesco goes through an economic downturn, it goes to its suppliers and says you have got to help us - everybody works together to get through it."
Cowell agreed a £20 million three-year contract in December 2006, while Ant and Dec are rumoured to be pocketing £15 million each in a "golden handcuffs" deal that runs until 2009.
Grade added that he doesn't fear that the proposed pay cuts would result in ITV losing talent to rival broadcasters.
He explained: "Undoubtedly, the natural trend of the talent market is down because the BBC is not that flush with money and Channel 4 is hurting. Who else is in the bidding for the big talent?"
Do you think they deserve this kind of money?
Speaking to The Sunday Times, Grade insisted that high-earning talent such as Simon Cowell need to reduce their pay to "share the pain" following ITV's decision to axe 1,000 jobs.
Grade said ITV has to find ways to cut costs due to the economic crisis: "When there is a downturn of this severity, everybody has got to share the pain - the talent, the independent producers, the in-house producers.
"When Tesco goes through an economic downturn, it goes to its suppliers and says you have got to help us - everybody works together to get through it."
Cowell agreed a £20 million three-year contract in December 2006, while Ant and Dec are rumoured to be pocketing £15 million each in a "golden handcuffs" deal that runs until 2009.
Grade added that he doesn't fear that the proposed pay cuts would result in ITV losing talent to rival broadcasters.
He explained: "Undoubtedly, the natural trend of the talent market is down because the BBC is not that flush with money and Channel 4 is hurting. Who else is in the bidding for the big talent?"
Do you think they deserve this kind of money?