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Business of TV Sport
Sportel Monaco 2011

Orange ‘not quitting sport’

France Telecom’s IPTV operator Orange said this week that despite some media reports to the contrary it has no intention of quitting sport completely, despite having announced that it would no longer bid for rights to the top French football league, Ligue 1, when its current €203-million ($258 million) per-season deal ends at the end of the 2011-2012 season.
The company told TV Sports Markets: “With over 750,000 subscribers, our premium television offers, Orange Sport and Orange Cinema Series, are still at the heart of our content strategy, and we will continue being a major player in the distribution of television services. It is a key differentiator from our competitors’ propositions, and we’re not considering exiting this market at all. What’s different is that we now wish to partner with leading industry players in order to expand these services.”

Orange is in talks with several potential investors. It is also thought to be talking to the football league about the plan of league president Frédéric Thiriez to launch a dedicated league channel. Orange said, however, that it could not say anything more at this stage, “as discussions with potential partners are still going on.”

Orange is still widely expected to bid for mobile rights, for which it currently pays €63 million per season, in the next deal cycle. However, the company said that “nothing has been confirmed about mobile rights.”