Canal+ asks Conseil d’Etat to cancel merger injunctions
Pascale Paoli-Lebailly | 14-09-2012

French pay-TV group Canal + Group is demanding that administrative authority Conseil d’Etat cancel the TPS-Canalsat merger injunctions taken last July by the competition Authority.

A public session will take place on 4 October during which both the pay-TV group and Competition Authority will present their respective arguments in front of the judge. A first decision will ascertain whether to reject Canal+’s request and cancel the Competition Authority’s decision.

On 23 July, Canal+ was hit by a series of restrictive injunctions to limit its dominant position over the pay-TV market after the Canalsat/TPS merger in 2007. One such effect is that Canal+ is enjoined to sell its shares in Orange Cinéma Séries (OCS) channels and to modify its movie acquisition strategy.In case Canal+ would break or stretch these limits, it would have to pay penalties up to 5 % of its global turnover.