It’s not hard to guess what ITV (LSE: ITV) CEO Michael Grade thinks of the company’s decision in 2005 to buy Friends Reunited for £170 million. Speaking at an analysts’ meeting to accompany ITV H109 results, Grade said: “ITV bought it. This management team did not buy it, let’s be very clear about that. It was regarded at the time as a good price. But the market has changed dramatically. You may have noticed but there’s a recession on. It’s the best price we could get.” Asked whether ITV had missed out on social media success despite buying Friends, he answered: “The game has changed. Friends Reunited does not fit our strategy.”

And it was a frantic morning for ITV’s PR team: the company only formally accepted the bid for Friends 5.01am, hours before the analyst meeting, meaning the earnings release didn’t even mention the sale and only said: “We are making good progress in the sales process of Friends Reunited”.