Canal+ will be the sole shareholder of both OCS and Orange Studio which handles series production and the theatrical distribution of movies.
OCS is France’s second biggest local pay TV service behind Canal+ and has more than 200 co-productions to its name as well as a catalogue of almost 1,800 audiovisual and cinematographic works.
“Since their creation in 2007 and 2008 respectively, competition in the audiovisual sector, particularly for OCS, has continued to intensify with the emergence of powerful international platforms,” Orange and Canal+ said in a joint release after signing an MOU for the transfer of the assets.
Canal+ has been a 33.34% shareholder of OCS since 2012 and has been its leading distributor.
The company already runs its own subscription-based digital service called MyCanal which is available in over 30 countries and distribution subsidiary Studiocanal.
The deal is set to be reviewed by staffers’ representatives and will be notified to the French Competition Authority.
