Ulster Television has signed a new deal with ITV Digital which will allow the latter to broadcast two of its channels to viewers in Northern Ireland.
Under the deal ITV Sport and ITV 2 will be available on the digital terrestrial platform alongside UTV.
It was not disclosed how much the deal is worth to Ulster Television but it is to discontinue UTV 2, its existing digital offering, at a saving of £350,000 sterling.
A spokesperson for UTV told ireland.com: "We are delighted that an agreement has now been reached with Granada and Carlton which will see ITV Sport and ITV 2 distributed on UTV's digital frequency in Northern Ireland. ITV 2 will replace UTV2 here on Friday 25th January as part of this agreement."