The Canal+ group announced on Friday “to give up” the broadcasting of the free channels of the TF1 group, within the framework of the renewal of the distribution contract between the two parties, due in particular to the requirement of a payment “of a very “Faced with these unfounded and unreasonable demands for channels which are accessible free of charge for all and which must remain so, the Canal+ group, a long-time partner of the TF1 group, is forced to give up broadcasting these channels in metropolitan France” , indicated Canal+ in a press release. the competition, the Canal+ group will be able to offer the entire event to its subscribers”, further assured the subsidiary of the Vivendi group. This is not the first time that the two giants of the French audiovisual sector have on the subject of the distribution of the free channels of the TF1 group (TF1, TMC, TFX, TF1 Séries Films and LCI). Before the forceps signing of their previous contract at the end of 2018, discussions between the two groups had turned into conflict commercial: refusing to pay to be able to broadcast channels otherwise accessible free of charge via DTT, Canal+ had decided to cut off the broadcast of TF1 to its subscribers for a time, causing an outcry among some viewers. This unprecedented showdown within the audiovisual landscape French had dramatically illustrated the rise of operators and other intermediaries in the modes of reception of TV channels, to the detriment of DTT (which can be received without any subscription). banging their fists on the table, the Superior Audiovisual Council (CSA, now Arcom) and the government had thus stepped up to the plate by calling on the two groups s to agree. For TF1, to make pay the operators who until now distributed its programs to their subscribers without remuneration is a key element of its strategy and must help it to diversify its incomes. This additional resource is all the more important at a time when the group has to face growing competition from Netflix and others.
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