CanalSat expecting 2 mil subscribers by ‘03
August 22, 2002 - The Hollywood Reporter
Vivendi Universal-controlled French satellite-television platform CanalSatellite expects to break the 2 million subscriber mark by year-end and unveil a 9% increase in revenues to €760 million ($744.8 million), chief executive Isabelle Parize said Wednesday.
Speaking at a product launch, Parize said the company is looking at a €60 million operating profit for 2002, up from €49 million in 2001.
One of the first companies officially back after la rentree—the return of French vacationers—CanalSatellite is proceeding with what marketing director Laurent de Camas calls a “slow and steady” approach staying within its four key sectors—cinema, sport, youth and documentaries.
The provider will add 12 channels to its lineup of 230, with the most of the additions being to its cinema offerings.
CanalSatellite will also double its subscription offers from two to four, adding family and cinema-based packages between its ‘basic’ and ‘deluxe’ offerings. Steering away from an a la carte channel selection, which de Camas says, “doesn’t work well… and doesn’t correspond to the needs of the consumers,” the company has added the packages “to provide flexibility for its customers.”
