Following news at the end of last year of new bids from partnering media groups for the independently funded news consortia pilots (IFNC) in Wales and the Tyne Tees and Borders region, Scottish broadcaster STV has confirmed its bid in partnership with ITN and Bauer Media for the scheme in Scotland.

This group’s bid will go up against a partnership of Trinity Mirror and production company Macmillan Media, which will include the support of newspapers the Dumfries and Galloway Standard, the Galloway News and the Daily Record and Sunday Mail.

ITN now has its hat in the ring for all three of the proposed pilot projects for the consortia, which will form a replacement service for ITV’s regional news network. ITN will work with Johnston Press, Newsquest, Metro Radio and the University of Sunderland on its Tyne Tees plan and ITV, Northcliffe, Newsquest and Tindle Newspapers on the Wales bid.

In competition for the north east pilot it will face a tender from UTV and a separate bid from a partnership of Trinity Mirror, the Press Association, TV production company Ten Alps and now additionally newspaper publisher CN Group. The TM/PA consortium will announced further partnerships for its bid, a press release from Trinity says.