Following the success of Pan African entertainment channel A + in Africa, Canal + will launch the channel in France February 9.
“We are launching this channel in France to respond to a request from Africans living in France and also to help producers from Africa to show their programmes outside the continent,”
explained at a press conference François Deplanck, director of channels and content at Canal+ Overseas.
A+ is based in Abidjan, Ivory Coast, and produces a general entertainment channel for the whole family, “much like D8 in France”. The channel employs about one thousand people and is part of the Canal Overseas bouquet.
During the same press event, Jacques du Puy, president of Canal+ Overseas, said the operator now has reached two million subscribers on the continent, representing a strong growth of 30% during the past year. Canal+ now has a total of 11 million subs worldwide, 5.5 million outside of France.
Although subscription prices are far lower in Afric a than in Europe, Du Puy said the average price in Africa is still slightly above EUR10 monthly, with prices ranging from EUR7.50 to EUR60 a month.