ITV is the new headline partner of the bCreator Awards, which has been renamed the ITV bCreator Awards 2025. CORQ spoke to bCreator’s CEO Alice Audley about the partnership and how it marks a further step in cementing creators’ position in the media.
ITV came onboard as a category sponsor in 2024, and has now extended its sponsorship. “The partnership with ITV is a major milestone, not only for bCreator, but for the entire creator community,” Audley points out. The move shows ITV is taking the creator economy seriously – “it really underpins the importance of our industry,” she says.
The bCreator Awards is the UK’s largest independent celebration of creators, agencies and influencer campaigns. “We have always been conscious about how we can improve and really do justice to the community and their work,” Audley says. In 2024, comedy creator Max Balegde was named bCreator of the year and Zoe Sugg was given the bCreator special recognition award. This year, the ITV bCreator Awards will take place in October.
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“We’re championing and taking creators seriously, and then to have ITV come on board just shows that everything’s levelling up,” Audley says. While many people in traditional media were initially sceptical of influencers, this has changed over the past few years. The ITV partnership signifies greater acceptance of creators and digital talent as well as the opportunity they offer.
“I think now that traditional media is truly embracing creators, we are going to see much more powerful collaborations,” Audley says. She believes more creators will take the lead in mainstream entertainment shows and become media entities in their own right. Influencers have a different type of relationship with their audiences and traditional media are incorporating this in their strategies as well, she says.
Ben Webster, ITV’s director of programme publicity, said: “At ITV, we believe in amplifying creativity and storytelling, and partnering with the bCreator Awards allows us to support the creators leading the way. We’re thrilled to celebrate their achievements and feel privileged to be part of their journey.”
ITV will be the event’s headline partner, but it is still looking to collaborate with other brands as category sponsors. The 2025 event will also feature new award categories, which will be announced in March when nominations open. “The creator community shows no signs of slowing down, so it’s as exciting now for us as it was 12 years ago,” Audley says.
By Dina Zubi, news and features writer for CORQ. Picture credit: Fordtography.
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