PARAMOUNT+ EXPANDS TO FRANCE AS PART OF
VIACOMCBS AND CANAL+ GROUP STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIP
Long-term agreement includes the extended carriage of ViacomCBS' Pay-TV channels as well as Paramount Pictures movies and select SHOWTIME® series
ViacomCBS Continues to Expand its Global Streaming Footprint in 2022, rapidly Unlocking Access in All Major European Countries including the UK, Germany, Italy, and now France
Paris, New York, February 15, 2022 – ViacomCBS Networks International (VCNI), a division of ViacomCBS Inc. (NASDAQ: VIAC, VIACA), and CANAL+ Group, a global leader in content creation and distribution, today announced a long-term strategic partnership that will bring CANAL+ subscribers world-renowned ViacomCBS content.
The strategic partnership includes:
- The distribution of Paramount+ as the service expands to France this year.
Upon launch, Paramount+ will be available to all CANAL+ Ciné Séries French subscribers. The ViacomCBS streaming service will be the home of SHOWTIME® in France. It will feature Paramount Pictures' blockbuster movies, new Paramount+ originals, Nickelodeon's beloved characters, incredible entertainment from MTV, and CBS Studios' top-rated shows, with new series including:
- The Offer, a limited event series about the making of the legendary film The Godfather,
- The Man Who Fell to Earth, a one-hour drama with Chiwetel Ejiofor and Naomie Harris
- The First Lady, a scripted anthology series starring Viola Davis, Michelle Pfeiffer, and Gillian Anderson
- Grease: Rise of the Pink Ladies, the musical series, takes place four years before the original film Grease
- Fatal Attraction starring Lizzy Caplan and Joshua Jackson
Paramount+ will also bring French fans well-known franchises like
Billions,
Dexter,
SpongeBob SquarePants,
South Park,
Star Trek, and many more, alongside iconic movies from Paramount Pictures such as
The Godfather,
Transformers,
Mission Impossible, and many more.
French audiences will also have direct access to Paramount+ via the Paramount+ App (iOS and Android) and via connected TVs and OTT platforms. Pricing and local content offering will be announced at a later date.
- The distribution of nine iconic ViacomCBS brands on CANAL+ Group channels: Nickelodeon, Nickelodeon Junior, Nickelodeon Teen, MTV, Paramount Channel, Game One, J-One, BET, and Comedy Central.
- The premiere of ViacomCBS content exclusively for CANAL+ Group channels and services, including films from Paramount Pictures and select original series from SHOWTIME.
- CANAL+ Group channels will air Paramount Pictures films six months after theatrical release, in line with new French media chronology regulations. In 2022, subscribers will be able to watch Top Gun Maverick and Scream on CANAL+ Group channels, followed by their debut on Paramount+ in France.
- Select SHOWTIME series will premiere on CANAL+ Group channels and services, starting in 2022 with Yellowjackets, Super Pumped and Your Honor 2. These series will then be available on Paramount+ in France.
In addition, the highly anticipated series HALO will be available as a Paramount+ original in France on CANAL+ as a special partner event for Paramount+ ahead of the service's launch later in 2022, where the series will then become available.
“Today marks an important milestone for our streaming growth story. After the UK, Italy, and Germany, the new strategic partnership with Canal+ accelerates our expansion in Europe with the launch of Paramount+ in France in 2022. Paramount+ will bring French audiences the best ViacomCBS content, including Paramount Pictures and SHOWTIME titles as well as a strong French content pipeline,” said Raffaele Annecchino, President and Chief Executive Officer, ViacomCBS Networks International. "We are strategically creating a streaming model for long-term growth, rapidly gaining a solid footprint across all the major European countries. Our SVOD premium services allow us to expand our streaming business in more than 60 markets, as we build our momentum toward expanding Paramount+ in all the markets across the world.”
Maxime Saada, Chairman and CEO of CANAL+ Group said: "This partnership with ViacomCBS, which include content and brands that have marked, and continue to mark, generations, is a new demonstration of CANAL+ Group's ability to team up with the most influential global players in the content industry. It strengthens our businesses, both as an aggregator, via the distribution of Paramount+ and ViacomCBS' channels, and as a publisher, by securing long-term exclusive access to Paramount Pictures movies and select SHOWTIME series for our CANAL+ channels. This acclaimed ViacomCBS content will strengthen CANAL+ Group's unique cinema and series offering that is available in more than 30 countries around the world."
About Paramount+
Paramount+ is a global digital subscription video streaming service from ViacomCBS that features a mountain of premium entertainment for audiences of all ages. Internationally, the streaming service features an expansive library of original series, hit shows and popular movies across every genre from world-renowned brands and production studios, including SHOWTIME®, BET, CBS, Comedy Central, MTV, Nickelodeon, Paramount Pictures and the Smithsonian Channel, in addition to a robust offering of premier local content. The service is currently live in the U.S., Canada, Latin America, the Nordics, and Australia, and will be live in 48 markets by the end of 2022.
For more information about Paramount+, please visit
www.paramountplus.com and follow @ParamountPlus on social platforms.
About CANAL+ Group
CANAL+ Group is a leading media company and pay-TV operator. It is also a leading player in free-to-air television with three national channels, C8, CSTAR and CNEWS, and an ads sales agency. CANAL+ Group has a wide international footprint with a presence in Europe, Africa and Asia. CANAL+ Group totals 22.1 million subscribers worldwide, including 8.9 million in mainland France. With STUDIOCANAL, CANAL+ Group is also a European leader in the production, acquisition and distribution of feature films and TV series. CANAL+ Group is wholly-owned by worldwide integrated content, media and communication group, Vivendi.
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