For several weeks, the argument has been burning between Disney and Canal+. And it is not with this announcement that relations between the two will improve. The American firm has just made this acquisition and it is a new blow against the encrypted channel of the Vivendi group.
This annual meeting on Canal+ stolen by Disney
On March 2, the 2025 Oscars ceremony will take place, as every year, rewarding the best in cinema. If the cinema event of the year will traditionally take place in Los Angeles, at the Dolby Theater, in 2025, the French public will not be able to do as usual.
For all French cinema lovers, the tradition was to follow the Oscars ceremony live by watching unencrypted on the Canal+ channel. Except that for this 97th ceremony which will take place on March 2 live from the Dolby Theater in Los Angeles, habits will have to change. And for good reason: Disney has just announced that the cinema award ceremony will be broadcast exclusively on its Disney+ streaming platform.
If this announcement made this Tuesday, December 10 may come as a surprise, upon closer inspection, it is not so surprising. Indeed, Disney and the Oscars is a big story. Every year, the ceremony is broadcast on the ABC channel which is a channel belonging to the big-eared firm.
The divorce between Disney and Canal+ accelerates
It should be remembered that there is water in the water between Canal and Disney France. Indeed, we recently learned that the divorce was finalized between the two parties. So, from January 1, it will no longer be possible for Canal+ subscribers to access the Disney+ platform which was integrated into certain offers from the French audiovisual group. The American firm wishes to manage these subscribers itself. Furthermore, let us add that this decision to terminate the contract with Canal implies that Canal+ subscribers will no longer be able to discover new Disney, Marvel or Pixar productions on the encrypted channel just six months after their release at the cinema.
With today’s media timeline, if the Vivendi group channel can broadcast films six months after their release in theaters thanks to its contribution to the financing of French cinema, its competitors like Netflix must wait fifteen months and Disney+ must wait seventeen months. According to specialists, Disney would be in negotiations to offer a greater contribution for the French 7th art in exchange for a more interesting first broadcast window. On this point, the company did not wish to communicate.
Still Disney which will exclusively offer the 97th Oscars 2025 ceremony on Disney+ on March 2 between 1 a.m. and 4 a.m. has just dealt a new blow to Canal+.
