March 23, 2011

France's leading pay TV company, Canal Plus, could be heading for an IPO as Lagardere looks to sell its 20 per cent stake. An acquisition by Vivendi, which owns the other 80 per cent, appears the likely outcome, although negotiations are going slowly. This report profiles the current state of the company that pioneered premium pay TV in Europe. While the company shed four per cent of its subscriber base in the last two years, Canal Plus believes it still has room to grow in a market in which only 22 per cent of households pay for premium pay TV. The decision of France Telecom to withdraw from expensive investments in content removes a major competitive threat from the market.

Tables and charts included:

• Canal Plus ownership
• Canal Plus timeline
• Canal Plus France: subscribers
• Canal Plus: key financials
• Canal Plus: breakdown of revenues in France (2010)
• Canal Plus Group subscriber proposition
• Canal Plus programme output 2010
• Canal Plus: Key TV and movie rights deals
• Canal Plus: breakdown of programme costs (France), EURO m

Pages: 11

Tables & charts: 9

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