Canal+ France subscribers down 542k; International up 505k in year to end-3Q 2016

PARIS — Vivendi’s Supervisory Board met today under the chairmanship of Vincent Bolloré and reviewed the Group’s Condensed Financial Statements for the first nine months of 2016, which were approved by the Management Board on November 7, 2016.

Canal+ Group

Canal+ Group revenues amounted to €3,902 million, down 3.3% compared to the first nine months of 2015 (-2.7% at constant currency and perimeter). Canal+ Group had a total of 11 million individual subscribers, a year-on-year decrease of 19,000. The international subscriber base continued to grow strongly, notably in Africa. In mainland France, the number of subscribers continued to decline to 5.4 million as of September 30, 2016.

Revenues from pay-TV operations in mainland France were impacted by the lower subscriber base, despite a slight increase in ARPU. International pay-TV revenues increased thanks to the growth in the individual subscriber base, notably in Africa where Canal+ Group added 505,000 subscribers since September 30, 2015.

                         September 30,  September 30,
                                  2015           2016  Change
                         -------------  -------------  ------
Individual subscribers          11,024         11,005     -19
  Mainland France                5,926          5,384    -542
  International                  5,098          5,621    +523
    Poland                       2,084          2,093      +9
    Overseas                       492            500      +8
    Africa                       1,744          2,249    +505
    Vietnam                        778            779      +1


Subscriptions                   15,438         15,473     +35
  Mainland France*               9,315          8,720    -595
    o/w CanalPlay                  774            620    -154
  International                  6,123          6,753    +630

* Individual and collective subscriptions with commitment and without commitment (Canal+, CanalSat, CanalPlay).

The transformation plan at Canal+ in France is well underway

To boost its subscriber base, Canal+ Group has redesigned its offers and its distribution model in France.

It has entered into strategic partnerships with Free and Orange to offer a bouquet of themed channels to be included in their triple-play packages. This new distribution strategy enables Canal+ Group to considerably expand its subscriber base in France while increasing the exposure of the channels being distributed.

Canal+ Group also introduced completely overhauled offers to be launched on November 15, 2016. The Canal+ channel will become the gateway to all new Canal offers. Subscribers will be able to modularly add themed packages to the Canal+ channel, including movies and series channels, sports channels and/or the Canal+ channels. All of these offers will be available with or without commitment. Canal+ Group will also launch a commitment-free premium offer available only on PCs, tablets and smartphones.

In parallel, Canal+ Group is pursuing the implementation of its €300 million cost optimization plan for Canal+ in France. The full effects of the plan are expected to be realized in 2018, with savings of around €60 to €80 million to be achieved in 2016.