Canal has signed an agreement for a 34% stake in French cinema operator UGC, as the London-listed Euro giant announced plans for a secondary listing in South Africa.
The UGC agreement will see the Paris-based company make a “long-term commitment to French and European cinema and theatrical exhibition,” according to Canal+ CEO Maxime Saada. The deal includes an option to build to a controlling stake in 2028.
Along with its cinema chain, UGC also has a sizeable content library, which will supplement the 9,400 titles already owned by Studiocanal, Canal+’s TV and film production and sales wing. They include franchises such as Qu’est ce qu’on au Bon Dieu – Serial (Bad) Weddings and Amélie, while its subsidiary Itinéraire Productions makes the original HPI – High Potential.
Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Negotiations over the stake began in September, and an agreement has now been reached. The French market has reacted to Canal+’s move with caution – directors’ guilds l’ARP and La SRF have said they are closely monitoring the implications of a takeover of the historic cinema business.
UGC operates one of the largest cinema chains in France, with 48 French theaters in total and another seven sites in Belgium. Between they generate and tens of millions of admissions each year.
The news came as Canal+ announced nine-month revenues of €4.86B ($5.6B), which from September 20 includes €78M consolidated from the takeover of South Africa-based MultiChoice. EBITA guidance was confirmed at €515M. The figures released today cover the nine months to September 30.
Once the MultiChoice deal is completely finalized, Canal+ will own 94.39% of shares, with an option triggered to buy up the rest.
Once fully under the Canal+ banner, MultiChoice will then delist from the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE). Canal+ will then take on a secondary inward listing on JSE that will give MultiChoice shareholders better access to the African operation.
The combined group will have more than 40 million subscribers in nearly 70 countries across Europe, Asia and Africa, and employ around 17,000 people.
The news comes in the same week Canal+ announced a deal to distribute its content on preloaded apps for Thomson Smart TVs in Europe.