Pélisson hopeful of Orange deal as TF1 posts strong results

TF1 is “hopeful” that it can strike a deal for the carriage of its channels on Orange, despite the falling out between the pair that saw the commercial broadcaster take legal action to prevent Orange from retransmitting its services, according to CEO Gilles Pélission.

Gilles Pélisson

In remarks accompanying his presentation of TF1’s solid full-year results, Pélisson said the group was continuing to talk to Orange and that he was also hopeful of striking deals with Free and Canal+, both of which, like Orange, have resisted the TF1 chief’s demands for retransmission fees.

Orange meanwhile has reportedly cut its advertising from TF1 channels in retaliation for the latter’s decision to prevent it from distributing TF1’s service to its IPTV subscribers.

TF1 reported full-year revenues of €2.125 billion, up 3%, with growth across both advertising and other activities. The company posted an operating profit of €162 million, up 3.5 times that recorded for the previous year.

TF1’s MYTF1 catch-up TV service recorded 1.3 billion videos viewed over the year, led by its daytime soap opera Demain Nous Appartient and daily show Quotidien.

TF1 said that the compulsory registration process introduced in April meant that it had doubled the number of identifiable internet viewers on its database to 18 million.