Every ten years, the agreements authorizing groups to broadcast their programs on these channels are re-examined by the regulator. A formality? Some thought so, wrongly banking on Arcom’s supposed wait-and-see attitude.
1 Two channels, C8 and NRJ 12, pushed aside
The regulator published on December 12 the list of 11 channels selected to be broadcast on DTT beyond February 28, 2025, confirming a first selection revealed in July. Unsurprisingly, BFMTV, LCI, TMC, W9, Gulli, TFX… are renewed until 2035. Thunderbolt, however, for those absent: two channels will disappear this winter.
NRJ 12 first, a media outlet from the NRJ group, whose audiences have fallen and whose economic viability, one of Arcom’s criteria, has been deemed too uncertain. This channel is also criticized for investing too little in new programs, for increasing rebroadcasts, and therefore for contributing little to the vitality of the audiovisual sector.
As for C8, a thorny case because it is very associated with the popular and divisive figure of Cyril Hanouna, it is the end of seven years of standoff between the Bolloré group channel and Arcom. During the hearing of C8 leaders in July, the nine members of Arcom did not hide their annoyance. The channel has been sanctioned more than thirty times, very often for slippages in the show “Touche pas à mon poste” (TPMP). Arcom criticizes C8 executives for not trying to channel the star host.
“Over the last eight years, you have accumulated 7.6 million euros in sanctions. The channel most penalized after yours is 380,000 euros… Each time, you explained to us that the incidents would not recur. And every time, it comes back,” lamented Benoît Loutrel, one of the nine “Sages” of Arcom.
C8 representatives announced that “TPMP” would now be recorded, for better control of the antenna. But this change was considered far too late by the independent authority. An authority whose legitimacy, in a certain way, was at stake: we do not see how the regulator could not react to a media that was so deaf to its calls for order.
2 Dramatic twist: the withdrawal of Canal
C8 and NRJ 12 therefore disappear from DTT, which will not prevent them from possibly continuing to exist on other channels. A twist of theater concluded, in mid-December, this redistribution of the cards: in reaction to the non-renewal of the C8 frequency, the Canal+ group announced its intention to withdraw its four pay channels from June 2025 ( Canal+, Canal+ Cinema, Canal+ Sport, Planète).
This choice completes the transformation of Canal+, a former TV channel that has become a true digital platform.
The most spectacular translation of this decision: after 40 years of existence, Canal+ is disappearing from channel 4. In fact, access to Canal+ via TNT had become very limited. It only concerned 70,000 households. The large majority of subscribers watch Canal programs via a computer or a connected television – on the myCanal platform. This choice completes the transformation of Canal+, a former TV channel that has become a true digital platform.
3 Two new channels by this summer
Among the holders of DTT frequencies for the next ten years, two new players: the Czech billionaire Daniel Kretinsky and his CMI group (“Elle”, “Télé 7 Jours”, “Franc Tireur”, Editis group, etc.) will offer from 1is March a channel structured around culture and the debate of ideas, with, for what we know at this stage, documentaries, magazines, a cultural and literary program – called “Culturama”. A project designed in response to the “nihilistic forces” working the country, according to those who defended it in a hearing at Arcom, Denis Olivennes and Raphaël Enthoven.
For its part, the Ouest-France group will launch “OFTV” in September, a general channel closely linked to regional and overseas territories. The project is somewhat reminiscent of the outlines of France 3 but targets a younger target than the public channel’s current audience: 25-49 year olds.
