Streaming Giants Will Spend Up To $330M Annually On French Content

Streaming Giants Will Spend Up To $330M Annually On French Content, But Don’t Expect Much Animation

After years of legal groundwork and months of intense negotiations, the streaming behemoths Netflix, Amazon, Disney+ and Apple TV+ struck a long-anticipated deal with the French radio and television regulator CSA on Thursday that could see the group invest €250 million ($282 million) to €300 million ($330 million) a year on average in French programming, Variety reported. Streamers will have to dedicate 80% of the 20% invested in French content to audiovisual works, such as shows, movies and documentaries that will world premiere on the platform. The remaining 20% — or 4% of streamers’ total turnover in France — will be invested in movies that will be theatrically released and will be subjected to the country’s strict windowing rules.The finer details vary between platforms.

The agreement is in line with with a plan the government unveiled earlier this year to require streaming services to invest 20%-25% of their revenue earned in France on local content, part of the European Commission’s larger Audiovisual Media Services Directive (AVMSD) aimed at “creating a level playing field” with existing players in the European Union.

Previously only domestic companies were required to finance local content, CSA said, but “in light of the profound transformation of the audiovisual landscape,” film and television multinationals will now also be compelled to make similar commitments.

Society of Dramatic Authors and Composers (SACD) wrote in a statement: “[T]he very limited portion allocated to animation, a pillar of French excellence abroad, constitutes a real disappointment and lack of understanding from the platforms, even as they have developed a large animation offering, which drives a large number of subscriptions from parents and families.”

France is the first country to put forth such regulations under the AVMSD, with other EU countries expected to follow suit.