Canal + subscribers are not ready to find TF1.
The Paris Court of Appeal ruled on Thursday and ruled in favor of the encrypted channel in the conflict which had pitted it against the front page since the beginning of September: it is not forced to restore satellite broadcasting of the TF1 group's channels.
Canal won at first instance before the Commercial Court, the Court of Appeal did not reverse the decision.
The legal battle between the two audiovisual giants broke out when Canal + stopped broadcasting TF1 channels on all its distribution channels on September 2 (box, myCANAL app, TNT Sat), for lack of a financial agreement for the renewal of their contract.
Both groups blamed each other for the conflict.
Canal + ensures that TF1 was too greedy in the renegotiation of the contract, concluded at the end of 2018 after a similar conflict.
TF1 claimed that it was its rival who did not wish to find an agreement.
Canal + won at first instance before the commercial court.
In court, the TF1 group specifically demanded the resumption of broadcasting of its five free channels (TF1, TMC, TFX, TF1 Séries Films and LCI) on TNT Sat, for a period of four months.
According to him, this would leave time to find a global agreement on the conflict or to allow TNT Sat customers to switch to another satellite offer, Fransat (Eutelsat group).
An already visible impact on audiences
The cessation of broadcasting of its channels by Canal + was detrimental to the audiences of the TF1 group.
In September, all of its five channels recorded an overall audience share of 25.7%, against 27.6% a year earlier and 26.8% in August, according to Médiamétrie.
Read alsoIn the white zone, the collateral victims of the TF1-Canal + crisis: “We miss Marie-Sophie Lacarrau”
In addition to this conflict, TF1 is going through another zone of turbulence after the failure of its merger with M6.
This prompted the group to reorganize, with the imminent arrival of an ex-Canal +, Rodolphe Belmer, at its head.