Channel 4's director of programming Ian Katz has insisted that it was the right decision to axe the popular reality series The Circle.
The broadcaster called time on the twist-filled show, hosted by Emma Willis, earlier this year after three series and a celebrity special.
The move came despite the show's success on catch-up - with the coveted younger audience in particular - but Katz says that the move was necessary to free up cash for new ideas.
"The Circle was a terrific show for us, I'm proud of it at every level," he said during a session at the Edinburgh TV Festival.
"It's a hugely entertaining, compulsive show but with a big idea at its heart.
"It grew consistently for us across three series but it was also a big chunk of our schedule and the channel is always about change. One always has to keep looking at these big pieces of schedule and see if we can come up with something new."
Katz added that he 'hopes' Netflix, which has the global rights to the format outside of the UK, goes on to take over the UK rights in the future.
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