Rodolphe Belmer to take over at TF1 Group

TF1 president and CEO Gilles Pélisson is to step down, initially from his role as CEO, to be replaced by ex-Canal+ and Eutelsat CEO Rodolphe Belmer.

Rodolphe Belmer

Péllisson has proposed Belmer to be voted in as CEO by the company’s administrative board on October 27, when the president and CEO roles will be split between the pair.

Pélisson will continue to serve as president until February 13 when the annual accounts for the current year will be finalised, after which Belmer will take over his role too.

Pélisson will rejoin parent company Bouygues as deputy CEO in charge of media and development.

The appointment of Belmer follows the abandonment of TF1’s plan to merge with rival broadcaster M6 over the refusal of the country’s competition watchdog to countenance the move without the sale of one or other broadcaster’s flagship channel.

Belmer was most recently CEO of Atos until July, having previously served as CEO of satellite operator Eutelsat for six years from 2016.

He spent most of his career at Canal+ Group, including as CEO of Canal+ from 2013 and CEO of Canal+ Group from 2012-15.

He has also been an administrator of Netflix since 2018 and president of the Séries Mania festival since 2019.

“I am very pleased that Rodolphe Belmer, who I have known for many years, has accepted my offer to join TF1 Group and I wish him full success in his role. His career at the head of several leading international French groups, his experience in the media and streaming sectors, comprise the best skills to overcome the challenges ahead of us and to drive the development of TF1 Group for the long term,” said Pélisson.

“I thank Gilles Pélisson and [Bouygues CEO] Olivier Roussat for their welcome and their confidence. I am very happy to join a group I admire and its world-class teams. I am convinced that together we will know how to respond to the multiple issues of the new world of media and open up new avenues of development and growth in the digital era for TF1 Group,” said Belmer.