ITV Meridian (previously Meridian Broadcasting) is the holder of the ITV franchise for the South and South East of England. The station was launched at midnight on 1 January 1993, replacing previous broadcaster Television South, and is owned and operated by ITV plc, under the licensee of ITV Broadcasting Limited. Meridian Broadcasting Ltd was one of several (but not all) ITV plc-owned regional companies to have its legal name changed on 29 December 2006, when it became ITV Meridian Ltd. Until 25 November 2025, this company was, along with most other regional companies owned by ITV plc, listed with Companies House as a "Dormant company".

The company broadcasts to the region from transmitters at Hannington, Midhurst, Rowridge, Whitehawk Hill, Hastings, Heathfield, Tunbridge Wells, Bluebell Hill, Dover and, since 2015, Oxford (previously part of the ITV Central region), as well as associated relays.

Today, ITV Meridian operates from studios in Whiteley, Hampshire, producing regional news services for three sub-regions, covering the South Coast of England, the South East of England and the Thames Valley.

ITV Meridian was formed as Meridian Broadcasting in 1991. The company consisted of a consortium between Mills & Allen International (MAI), Selectv (15%) and Central Independent Television (20%), the latter of whom advised the consortium. Central Independent Television, along with Selectv, were instrumental in winning the franchise as a low bidder. Meridian Broadcasting intended to operate as a publisher broadcaster, meaning that the majority of programmes would be commissioned from independent producers rather than produced in-house.

In the ITV franchise auction of 1991, Meridian Broadcasting faced three other opponents in gaining the franchise, including the incumbent Television South and bids from Carlton Communications and CPV-TV. Meridian Broadcasting bid £36.5 million for the franchise, lower than TVS's bid of £59.8 million; however, the bid made by TVS was rejected following an unsatisfactory business plan. As the highest qualified bidder, Meridian Broadcasting therefore won the franchise.

Meridian Broadcasting launched at midnight on 1 January 1993 replacing Television South, with the programme Meridian – The First 10 Minutes, a 10-minute outside broadcast from Winchester Cathedral presented by Debbie Thrower and previewing the station's forthcoming output.

Other launch day programmes included Michael Palin's documentary First Night on Meridian and the first Meridian News bulletins for its three sub-regions. Meridian advertised their presence as the new ITV contractor heavily; promotions began appearing on TVS several weeks before the launch and the new company's logo was also incorporated into the product for the first advert shown on the station – the special edition Ford Fiesta Meridian, available through Southern Ford dealers.

Six months after the launch of Meridian Broadcasting, the new company joined up with HTV, Westcountry Television, Channel Television and S4C to form a joint advertising company operated by Meridian Broadcasting and HTV.