The competition Council should ocus on three rele ant markets

At Bercy, the Directorate-General competition, consumption and the repression o raud (DGCCR ) prepares to enter the competition Council so that it gi es an opinion on the acquisition o Canal GST. The Council, which has three months to make its erdict a ter ha ing sought the opinion o the CSA, will ha e to identi y the rele ant markets likely to be a ected by this operation, an analysis o the competiti e situation, assess the bene its and disad antages o the operation, and inally accept it or reject it, in that proposed, or not remedies.

The competition Council should ocus on three rele ant markets. The irst said "market downstream" is that the supply o tele ision iewers. It will e aluate i it only concerns the supply o pay-T satellite or arri als T ADSL and DTT ree with a bouquet o 18 strings ha e extended this market.

The second, "intermediate", said relations between strings publishers and distributors o bouquets. He poses two problems. The irst relates to the possibility, or ADSL and cable distribution plat orms, choosing strings to the unit to orm their own bouquets. Cable operators and ISPs ha e made this request ocusing on the possibility o return to Canal on-line, while the CSA orced Canal to be autodistribuer at the pre-consultation by the DGCCR . The second problem concerns strings publishers, who need access to all distribution plat orms: cable, satellite, ADSL and DTT pay. inally, the third rele ant market, said "upstream", co ers the acquisition o audio isual rights, including sport, American and rench cinema series and iction.

A ter that, the Council shall assess the bene its and disad antages o the operation or the subscribers that audio isual pro essionals, and propose any remedies. "The objecti e o the operation is to achie e cost sa ings in the purchase o premium rights, decoders or marketing expenses or the bene it o subscribers, both by impro ements in quality o programs and in estments in the documentary and iction, and an impro ement o the technological o er with the generalization o the digital, HDT and mobile T ." or the community, the acceleration o the switcho er o the 2.3 million analogue subscribers to quickly extinguish the analog signal. "Otherwise, at the current rate o migration, should wait until 2014-2015," argued Oli ier Courson, General Secretary o the Group Canal .

But the Council could decide to impose remedies such as those who ha e been in the merger o Italy and Spain satellite plat orms. In Italy, the authorities ha e prohibited Sky Italia to inter ene in other markets as the satellite, and in Spain, they ha e imposed price caps to Sogecable. Oli ier Courson said that the situation in rance is totally di erent: "competiti e pressure rom the uture single cable, ISPs and ree DTT operator is such that it is not in our interest to increase prices because customers retain a large capacity o arbitration between our uture o ers and those o competitors." As soon as the inancial montage o the operation, Canal has also reser ed the possibility to wai e the redemption o GST i the conditions imposed him unsuitable. In this case, it will pay compensation o racture at T 1 and M6.