Canal Plus is reported to have entered into exclusive negotiations to acquire Orange’s pay-TV and film operations (OCS) in France.
According to Reuters, the deal would add another three million subscribers to its streaming offerings, enabling it to gain traction on the global tech giants.
Canal Plus Group, which itself is owned by Vivendi, already owns 33.3 per cent of OCS and has been distributing the service on its platform since 2011.
The talks are said to be informal, and have been going on for “months”. Any deal would be subject to approval by regulators.
Last year, French broadcasters TF1 and M6 announced plans to create a new media group in order to take on the global streaming services. However, this was eventually abandoned after regulators expressed concerns around competition, particularly in advertising.
