Canal+ finds new ally for its digital platform

The French-owned station, Poland's largest pay-TV channel, announced last week that it had signed a letter of intent with Poland's largest private television station, Polsat, to cooperate in the launch of Canal's digital platform.
The new partnership, agreed July 1, came exactly a month after talks fell apart between Canal+ and U.S.-based @Entertainment to create a joint digital platform, which was to be called Wizja+. (See also WBJ, June 8-14, 1998.) @Entertainment is now going ahead with a digital platform on its own and expects to launch in September.
"The reason why we got together was very simple," said Gaspard de Chavagnac, deputy managing director of Canal+ Polska. "We've always said we wanted to build a truly Polish platform with Polish players, and we are just continuing this strategy."
He added that the two companies will begin talks this week. "We hope to close the talks within the next two months," said Aleksander Myszka, president of the managing board of Polsat TV.
Canal+ had also hoped to quickly conclude talks with @Entertainment after signing a letter of intent in April. But this time around the talks are likely to be less complicated because Polsat will not initially be taking an equity investment in the platform.
"This time, it's not about financial investment and willingness to increase the value of the platform on the capital market," de Chavagnac said. "This time we want to build a long-term television business."
The two companies did not release details of the partnership, although they said it would relate to content sharing. They also have not ruled out equity or co-production options. Canal+ Polska plans to launch its digital platform in September. The package will include more than 10 Polish-language channels, including three of its own, Polsat and possibly public broadcaster Telewizja Polska (TVP).
@Entertainment's Wizja TV has already started distribution of its platform through its cable television network Polska Telewizja Kablowa (PTK), which is the largest cable operator in Poland with more than 800,000 subscribers. The company plans an official launch of its D-DTH (digital-direct-to-home) services September 18.
Canal+ said last week it was not afraid of competition from its former partner-to-be.
"Both Canal+ and Polsat are very strong players on Poland's television market," said de Chavagnac. "The ultimate goal is to get a real joint-venture this time."
Canal+ also plans to emphasize that its platform will feature Polish content. In addition, both Canal+ and Polsat are likely to highlight the fact that its platform will be broadcast in Poland, while @Entertainment's will be beamed from a U.K.-based site. "It's pretty obvious that it's easier to talk with a station which operates on the basis of a broadcasting license and will beam its digital platform from Poland," Myszka said.
Polsat had spoken with @Entertainment about inclusion on the Wizja platform, but was hesitant about joining because of the U.K. up-link, which meant the broadcast would not have a clear legal status in Poland, Myszka said.