Canal+ (French TV provider)

This article is about the French pay television provider. For the French pay television channel, see Canal+ (French TV channel). For other uses, see Canal+ (disambiguation).

CANAL+
TypeSociété anonyme
Country
France
AvailabilitySatellite television
IPTV
Founded14 November 1992 (1992-11-14) by André Rousselet
HeadquartersIssy-les-Moulineaux
Broadcast area
France
Switzerland
OwnerVivendi
ParentGroupe Canal+
Former names
Canalsatellite (1992–2005)
Canalsat (2005–2016)
Canal (2016–2019)
Official website
www.canalplus.com

Canal+, established as CanalSatellite in 1992 and later rebranding to CanalSat, is a French subscription TV provider associated with the channel of the same name. It is a subsidiary of Groupe Canal+, which is wholly owned by Vivendi.

History

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Further information: Groupe Canal+ § History

Digital satellite provider CanalSatellite was launched as a wholly-owned subsidiary of Groupe Canal+ on 6 December 1991.[1][2] The shareholders were Canal+ (66 percent) and Lagardère Active (34 percent), a subsidiary of Lagardère.[citation needed] Canal+ began satellite broadcasting in 1992, to reach parts of France not covered by cable.[3]

On 27 April 1996, CanalSatellite launched as a digital satellite platform, with 24 channels and interactive services.[2]

On 23 May 2005, CanalSatellite was renamed Canalsat.[2]

With Canal+, the utilisation of the card pairing (QEV) technology allowed access to many channels such as Eurosport, Paris Premiere, or LCI.[4]

On 31 August 2006, after acquiring competitor TPS, the two companies were merged within the Canal+ Group.[2]

On 7 December 2010 both Canal+ channels and the 90 CanalSat channels became available live on Microsoft's XBOX 360.[2]

In 2011 the merger with TPS was cancelled by the Competition Authority. Canal+ appealed, and the Authority determined that its authorisation would be conditional on a number of injunctions, including "re-establish[ing] sufficient competition in the pay television market".[5]

In September 2015 Vincent Bolloré announced that the service would change its name to simply "Canal".[6] CanalSat adopted the new name on 15 November 2016, accompanied by new offerings, merging with the bouquet Les Chaînes Canal+.[7]

In 2017, Canal lost Discovery and NBCUniversal channels, recovered by SFR.[8] Canal replaced them by exclusive newly-launched channels: Warner TV, Polar+, and Novelas TV.[9]

The service was renamed Canal+ on 1 August 2019, unifying its brand across the world.[10] In September 2019, Canal+ offered a new upgrade of its subscription package "Canal+ Ciné Séries" which included Netflix.[11] Disney+ was included from its launch on 7 April 2020 for all Ciné Séries subscribers,[12] and similar upgrades were proposed for Paramount+ and Max where Canal+ is their main partner in France.[13][14]

Overseas operations

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References

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  1. ^ "L'histoire du Groupe Canal+ de 1983 à nos jours". Archived from the original on 5 February 2012. Retrieved 3 April 2009.
  2. ^ a b c d e "L'histoire du Groupe CANAL+ de 1983 à nos jours". Canal+. 2010. Archived from the original on 5 February 2012.
  3. ^ "Canal Plus". Encyclopedia.com. 18 May 2018. Retrieved 16 May 2024.
  4. ^ "CanalSat to offer short-term subscriptions". Broadband TV News. 24 September 2009.
  5. ^ Blocman, Amélie. "France : Merger of TPS and CanalSat: Competition Authority Pronounces Injunctions". IRIS Merlin. Archived from the original on 5 December 2014. The operation had only been authorised in 2006 on condition that 59 undertakings were respected, and the Competition Authority, noting that the Canal Plus Group had failed to observe ten of these - including some that were of crucial importance - decided in September 2011 to withdraw its decision authorising the operation (see IRIS 2011-9/17).
  6. ^ Schmitt, Frédéric (24 September 2015). "Canalsat va changer de nom". Télé Satellite et Numérique (in French). Retrieved 18 May 2024.
  7. ^ "LE GROUPE CANAL+ CHANGE LA DONNE : NOUVELLE MARQUE, NOUVELLES OFFRES - Vivendi". www.vivendi.com. Retrieved 29 October 2024.
  8. ^ "SFR ravit à Canal+ l'exclusivité des chaînes Discovery et NBC Universal". Europe 1 (in French). 7 December 2016. Retrieved 29 October 2024.
  9. ^ Sandrine (25 September 2017). "CANAL : POLAR+, Warner TV et Novelas TV débarquent, i24news de retour". alloforfait.fr (in French). Retrieved 29 October 2024.
  10. ^ "La distribution et l'édition, les deux piliers du groupe Canal+ en France - La revue européenne des médias et du numérique". la-rem.eu. Retrieved 29 October 2024.
  11. ^ "Netflix avec Canal+ : tout savoir sur la meilleure offre cinéma et séries". Ariase (in French). 26 September 2019. Retrieved 18 May 2024.
  12. ^ "Lancement de Disney+ en France avec Canal+ - Vivendi". www.vivendi.com (in French). 7 April 2020. Retrieved 29 October 2024.
  13. ^ Rest, Maud Le (21 August 2024). "Canal+ et Paramount prolongent et renforcent leur partenariat". Ecran Total (in French). Retrieved 29 October 2024.
  14. ^ "Les coulisses du lancement de Max en France - The Media Leader FR". fr.themedialeader.com (in French). 21 June 2024. Retrieved 29 October 2024.
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