TV frequencies: the summary appeals of C8 and NRJ12 rejected

The French Council of State on Monday rejected the summary appeals of the C8 and NRJ12 channels against the non-renewal of their TNT frequency (digital terrestrial television) by Arcom, the audiovisual regulator, according to decisions consulted by the ‘AFP.

He thus considered that the condition of urgency necessary for an interim order was “not met”. In his decisions, he specifies that the case will be examined on its merits “in the coming weeks”.

In addition to the emergency procedure of summary proceedings, the two channels have in fact filed an appeal “for abuse of power” against the decision taken by Arcom in mid-December, it is indicated in the decisions of the highest administrative court.

After a preselection which excluded C8 and NRJ12 in July, Arcom signed 11 agreements on December 12 with the new TNT frequency holders, of which the two channels are not part. Current authorizations will expire on February 28.

C8 and NRJ12 were dismissed by Arcom in favor of two new channels: one is launched by the CMI France group, owned by Czech billionaire Daniel Kretinsky, and the other by the Ouest-France group. Their authorizations will begin on March 1, 2025 and September 1, 2025, respectively.

Owned by the Canal+ group, in the hands of conservative billionaire Vincent Bolloré, C8 has accumulated fines of 7.6 million euros due to the slip-ups of its star host Cyril Hanouna.

In 2024, C8 achieved a 3% audience share (as much as Arte), which makes it the leading DTT channel, according to annual figures published Monday by Médiamétrie.

Hanouna and the entire Canal+ group have strongly contested in recent months the non-renewal of the C8 frequency. On December 18, the controversial host briefly participated in a protest demonstration of several dozen people in front of the Parisian headquarters of Arcom.

“We will, of course, continue to make the show until the end of February,” Cyril Hanouna declared at the time. After that, “we are working on other avenues” to continue the program, he added.

Canal+ management has already announced some 250 job cuts, including 150 linked to the end of C8, according to the group’s inter-union association.

At the beginning of December, the group also announced the withdrawal from June 2025 of its four pay channels on DTT (Canal+, Canal+ Cinéma, Canal+ Sport, Planète), citing the non-renewal of C8 and “a tax and regulatory environment increasingly restrictive.

For its part, NRJ12 (NRJ group), which mainly programs rebroadcasts, employs around a hundred people. The channel considers that “Arcom negotiated the agreements in a framework not provided for by law by only allowing “pre-selected” candidates (editor’s note, in July) to improve their files” before its final decision, had- she indicated on December 19 after filing her appeals.