The news that French president Nicolas Sarkozy wants to consolidate all French foreign broadcasting under the France Monde name instead of TV5 Monde has not gone down well with its partner broadcasters from Belgium, Switzerland and Quebec. Sarkozy has proposed to bring together TV5 Monde, France 24 and Radio France Internationale (RFI) under one single umbrella. “This will make TV5 an affiliate of France,” according to Abdou Diouf, president of the l’Organisation internationale de la Francophonie (OIF). France pays 84% of the TV5 Monde budget, the remainder is contributed by the other member broadcasters, RTBF from Belgium TSR from Switzerland, Radio-Canada and Télé-Québec. The others have now formally protested against the plan.
About Robert Briel
Arnhem-based Robert covers the Benelux, France, Germany, Austria and Switzerland as well as IPTV, web TV, connected TV and OTT. Email Robert at rbriel@broadbandtvnews.com.