From 1 January 2027, every new ad delivered to ITV – across broadcast, ITVX and addressable – will need closed captions.
Channel 4 led the way by making closed captions mandatory for advertising in March 2026, and now ITV is following suit and making it the norm!
This means that all new advertising material intended to air on ITV from 1 January 2027 must meet the new requirements.
What are closed captions?
Closed captions (sometimes referred to as subtitles) are on-screen text displaying the spoken dialogue and important audio information in a television programme or advert. They can be switched on or off by the viewer, allowing them to choose whether to watch with or without captions.
For advertising, captions should:
- Be clear and easy to read, with an appropriate font size, style and colour.
- Accurately reflect the spoken dialogue and relevant audio information.
- Be synchronised with the audio.
- Be positioned carefully to avoid covering important on-screen content, such as graphics, text or product information.
Why are ITV doing it?
The policy aims to support the 18 million people in the UK who are deaf, have hearing loss or experience tinnitus.
Millions of viewers rely on subtitles to follow what’s happening on screen, while many others simply prefer to watch with the sound off. Until now, programmes have been subtitled, but adverts largely haven’t. For these viewers, this means the ad break can be the moment the story stops.
Closing this gap is an important step towards making television advertising more accessible. It also means your advert can reach and engage with more of the audience you’ve paid to reach.
What does this mean for our clients?
Start planning now.
If you are planning any ITV advertising campaigns for 2027, it is important to factor closed captions into your creative and production arrangements to ensure your advertising material is ready in good time and avoids any potential delays to transmission.
We’ll handle it.
If you’re using JHA to produce, clock or clear your advert and deliver it to ITV, we can take care of the closed-captioning process for you, working with Cape or Clearcast to add the captions – same goes for Channel 4 ads!
That means no need to find a new supplier or manage an additional step yourself – we’ll help make sure your advert is ready to meet ITV’s requirements.
If you have any questions or would like to discuss how this may affect your future campaigns, please don’t hesitate to get in touch. We’re always happy to help.
