TV Numeric, the sole company marketing the French basic pay-DTT package, is contemplating pulling the plug on its business.
The move follows the end of two premium terrestrial channels, TPS Star and Cfoot. The company now want to concentrate on selling push-VOD over DTT which will launch in April under the SelecTV brand.
Canal+ has announced it wil discontinue its movie channel TPS Star on April 4 and CFoot, the French Football League channel, will end transmissions at the close of the 2011/12 season.
TV Numeric, the only distributor of the basic DTT package (consisting of Eurosport, Paris Première, Planet +, LCI, TF6 and CFoot), plans to cease this activity, according to local press reports.
“The situation is increasingly difficult and problematic,” according to Charles Bornot, president of TV Numeric, in a statement. TV Numeric currently has around 100,000 subscribers.
In May 2011, the CSA awarded a licence to TV Numeric for its push-VOD service. Called SelecTV, the over-the air service will have two complimentary offers, Selection, a subscription on-demand service offering a choice of series, documentaries, family, music and youth programming from a number of sources including the French Disney Channel, Game One and Eurosport; and A La Seance, a transactional VOD service with movies which will become available just four months after their theatrical release.
Select TV is also available on satellite. Subscribers may order movies by phone, using a smartphone application, via a website or directly with the DTT set-top if it is connected to the internet.
