TF1 Group has filed a complaint with the European Commission, alleging “illegal state aid” from France in favour of the public broadcaster France Television.
The argument is based around the scrapping of the TV licence fee in favour of a precept that will be allocated from VAT.
In an article in La Figaro, lawyers Frédéric Mion and Benoît Le Bret argue that while European Community law protects the financing of public services, it is done so through clearly defined rules.
“This change in the financing model decided by the legislator constitutes new State aid. In principle, it must be notified to the European Commission before it is implemented. Otherwise, it is illegal,” say Mes Mion and Le Bret in the newspaper.
The complaint, confirmed by TF1 on Monday evening, also claims a “double tax fraud” with France Télévisions benefitting from a reduced rate of VAT (2.1% instead of 20%).
Brussels has notified France of its intention to investigate the complaint, a process which is expected to take 18 months.
In 2023, the Association of Private Channels (ACP), which brings together TF1, M6, Canal+ and Altice, accused France Télévisions of unfair competition. In a letter sent to the Prime Minister and published by Le Figaro, they accused the public group of falling short of its public service obligations and broadcasting overtly commercial programmes that also circumvented its ban on advertising after 20:00 CET.
