Press release: Orange and the Canal+ Group have signed a memorandum of understanding regarding the acquisition of OCS and Orange Studio by the Canal+ Group
Press release
Paris, 9 January 2023
Orange and the Canal+ Group have signed a memorandum of understanding regarding the acquisition of OCS and Orange Studio by the Canal+ Group
Orange and the Canal+ Group today announced the signature of a memorandum of understanding anticipating the acquisition by the Canal+ Group of all capital held by Orange in the OCS pay TV package and in Orange Studio, the film and series co-production subsidiary. The Canal+ Group will become the sole shareholder of the two companies following this transaction.
The quality of OCS service and content – currently distributed by all ISPs as well as within Canal+ cinema series offers – is recognized by both industry professionals and consumers. Orange Studio has more than 200 co-productions to its credit as well as a catalog of nearly 1,800 audiovisual and cinematographic works, including Oscar-winning and emblematic films such as The Artist and The Father.
Since their creation in 2007 and 2008 respectively, competition in the audiovisual sector, particularly for OCS, has continued to intensify with the emergence of powerful international platforms. Given this context, Orange has endeavored to ensure the continued development of these two subsidiaries while preserving jobs and the pre-financing of audiovisual content. To ensure these objectives, Orange entered discussions with the Canal+ Group, its historic partner and a recognized European player in the creation and distribution of content. Canal+ is already a 33.34% shareholder of OCS since 2012 and is its leading distributor. The leading film and television studio in Europe, StudioCanal has many assets to promote the Orange Studio catalog.
The operation will be presented to employee representative bodies and will be notified to the French Competition Authority.
About Orange
Orange is one of the world’s leading telecommunications operators with sales of 42.5 billion euros in 2021 and 136,500 employees worldwide at 30 September 2022, including 75,000 employees in France. The Group has a total customer base of 286 million customers worldwide at 30 September 2022, including 240 million mobile customers and 24 million fixed broadband customers. The Group is present in 26 countries. Orange is also a leading provider of global IT and telecommunication services to multinational companies under the brand Orange Business Services. In December 2019, the Group presented its “Engage 2025” strategic plan, which, guided by social and environmental accountability, aims to reinvent its operator model. While accelerating in growth areas and placing data and AI at the heart of its innovation model, the Group will be an attractive and responsible employer, adapted to emerging professions.
Orange is listed on Euronext Paris (symbol ORA) and on the New York Stock Exchange (symbol ORAN).
For more information on the internet and on your mobile: www.orange.com, www.orange-business.com and the Orange News app or to follow us on Twitter: @orangegrouppr.
Orange and any other Orange product or service names included in this material are trademarks of Orange or Orange Brand Services Limited.
Press contacts: Orange
Emmanuel Gauthier : emmanuel2.gauthier ; +33 6 76 74 14 54
Sylvain Bruno : sylvain.bruno@orange.com ; +33 6 86 17 88 89
About CANAL+ Group
CANAL+ Group, a subsidiary of Vivendi, is a major player in the creation and distribution of content worldwide, with nearly 24 million subscribers, a presence in more than 50 countries and 7500 employees on every continent. CANAL+ Group has nearly 10 million subscribers in France and nearly 7 million in Africa. It is the leading television operator in French-speaking Africa and the largest shareholder in MultiChoice, the leader in pay-TV in English and Portuguese-speaking Africa. CANAL+ Group is a major player in the production and marketing of television channels, with 116 linear and non-linear channels produced in-house. It aggregates major thematic channels and global content platforms such as Netflix, Disney+ and Paramount+. With nearly 3.4 billion euros invested in content each year, it is a key player in sport (main funder in France of football and rugby), films (leading funder in France and Poland), and series (including more than 50 original series per year in more than 14 languages). With the support of its subsidiary Studiocanal, which owns 10 production companies in 7 European countries, CANAL+ Group is the leading producer and distributor of feature films and TV series in Europe. It holds a catalogue of near 7000 titles from more than 60 countries. Finally, it is also a key player in digital with its CANAL+/myCanal app, whose international deployment is accelerating, with a presence in some thirty countries to date.
Press contacts: CANAL+ Group
Olivia Abehassera : olivia.abehassera@canal-plus.com ; +33 1 71 35 19 66
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