Otherwise it is prohibited any exclusivity in VOD

Yesterday, Bercy has approved the acquisition of Canal GST. But it takes formal control in November. In the meantime, he appoint a Director-General delegate, to finally access the accounts of GST. Last December, indeed, Canal and Vivendi have agreed to purchase GST to TF1 and M6, without conducting due diligence. In two months, Canal will be at the head of a whole $ 9.5 million subscriptions to a pay-TV offer and now the French satellite operator.

Until Wednesday, discussions were held to wrest final concessions Canal . End of July, he had proposed 39 commitments ("Les Echos" from August 7) to remedy the competition problems. In the end, Canal has expanded this number to 59 and promised to keep for six years, against five years initially. It is committed to facilitating its competitors access to the market for rights in prohibiting to use its formidable ability to purchase to dry film markets, the series and sports rights. Otherwise it is prohibited any exclusivity in VOD.

Nuanced reactions

Novelty, it undertakes to reconvey, through competition, the audiovisual rights in clear on the television series and the sport it does not use. It meets in this an application of France television. With the ADSL operators who want to market their own bouquet of channels, it is committed to "unbundle" 7 chains including the GST Star premium. But the content of GST Star was the subject of heated debate. Telecommunications operators claimed that this chain will disseminate of French football, for which Canal pays EUR 600 million per year. They achieved no success. On the other hand, the exclusive of GST on British and German football are kept. To independent chains, the group is committed to resume on its bouquet, the same proportion of chains that currently. And as Bertrand Meheut, the President of Canal , said yesterday that the number of strings of the bouquet should increase at the time, the number of independent channels will do the same. Another important point, Bercy stressed that new commitments have been made so that the presence of Lagardère, TF1 and M6 to the capital of the new set, does not affect competition in the only free pay TV. France television had pointed this risk.

The reactions of competitors are nuanced. France Telecom "expects to know the specific content of these commitments they will be published here in late September, Editor's note and the conditions of their implementation and more of their control", said Patricia Langrand, Executive Director of the contents of the operator. On the other hand, Canal held to treat the two bouquets subscribers. Thus, as early as November, CanalSat subscribers will receive TF1, M6 and GST Star and those of GST will have access to channels Canal Bouquet (the paying). Then, the two bouquets, always separated, will be supplemented with new thematic channels without price increase. Finally, after the important period of year-end sales, the Group should unify the two offers. It should be noted that he has not taken any commitment on the evolution of prices for six years, as it had been imposed on the merger of the two Italian bouquets to create Sky Italia. "The situation is not the same." "In France, there is a genuine competition on the part of the ADSL operators", said Bertrand

Meheut. However, it is committed to that "customers do not have to pay in case of change of decoder or parable". However, the decision to keep two operators, Eutelsat and Astra, or only one, has not yet taken. Finally, Canal reflects on the possibility of marketing ADSL access with its satellites offers to provide video on demand services.