ITV agrees deal to buy Talpa Media, producer of The Voice

LONDON (Reuters) - British broadcaster ITV has agreed a deal to buy Talpa Media, the firm behind the reality TV programme The Voice, for an initial fee of 355 million pounds ($531 million). The firm, which has been increasing its presence in TV production to reduce its reliance on volatile advertising, said the total maximum consideration it could pay was approximately 781 million pounds, dependent on Talpa producing significant profit growth over an eight-year period. John de Mol, who established Talpa and who also created the Big Brother programme format, will also need to remain committed to the business during that time, ITV said. ($1 = 0.6681 pounds) (Reporting by Kate Holton; editing by Jason Neely)