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According to François Godard, an analyst at Enders Analysis, one option would be to establish a system of progressive amounts over two years, with a sharing of profits and risks. In return, Canal+ could commit to marketing attractive packages, bundled with the rest of its content.

"The bundle is the essential criterion for a good commercial launch: finding all the matches in the same place, as well as entertainment programs to limit cancellations during the year, and especially in the summer," emphasizes the expert.

"RTL has proven that it can drive momentum in the subscription market," said François Godard, an analyst at the British consulting firm Enders Analysis. He believes that Sky and RTL could become the most important TV providers in Germany.

Any actual enforcement isn’t pegged until 2026. The CMS has deliberately broken up its measures into three waves to speed up the first wave, said Jamie MacEwan, senior analyst at media analysis firm Enders. “It just goes to show how slow the regulatory process is compared to tech companies’ ability to iterate and transform their products at speed,” he said. “Google’s new products are already impacting publishers, and it is only likely to go further, so any delay could mean extra months adapting to a difficult operating environment.”  

It’s a bit of a tight-rope walk for the CMA. “Finding a middle ground on things like fair ranking, the CMS could upset Google and publishers alike if it isn’t careful,” added MacEwan. “A key tension is between principles-based and outcomes-based regulation.”

Research by Enders Analysis showed that the UK’s network operators lost contract subscribers for the first time last year, while MVNOs gained 1.65 million.

The research specialist attributes the rise of virtual operators to the cost of living crisis and longer handset lifespans, which has increased demand for Sim-only contracts, “a traditional area of strength” for the MVNOs.

That being said, Tom Harrington, Enders Analysis Head of Television, pointed out that Netflix and TF1 have had a close relationship for some time.

He noted that TF1 boss Rodolphe Belmer used to sit on Netflix’s board and that the two companies are working on Tout Pour La Lumière, the streamer’s first daily drama series, or soap, in France, which was itself branded game-changing when unveiled late last year.

“[TF1] has also no doubt noticed the performance of some of its programming that has been licensed to Netflix compared to on [on-demand service] TF1+ – the ability of certain broadcaster content to find a new audience on Netflix and thrive has been a recurrent theme in most territories over the past decade,” he wrote. Only last year, we explored how the UK was experiencing a Suits effect as older, rather parochial British broadcaster shows found themselves being given a second lease of life on the Netflix most-watched list.

Francois Goddard, an analyst at Enders Analysis, noted that women’s football received a bump from the 2022 tournament. It looks like the same thing could happen again at the end of this summer too.

It’s a good move for Disney, according to Goddard, because the company “needs more content in Europe, more local content and more regular content.”

Advertisers are increasingly interested in women’s sport too. In the age of subscriptions and streaming, live sports are still a popular placement for advertising. “This makes it even more attractive as an option for local, regular content,” says Goddard. As with the price of the rights, the cost of advertising against women’s sport is understood to be less than in men’s sports, providing marketers and brands with a way to make their money go further in the sports space.

“This is a very innovative deal,” with “nothing of the sort elsewhere,” Enders Analysis analyst François Godard tells The Hollywood Reporter. “It pivots Netflix into aggregation.”

Will Netflix bring this approach to other markets? “They could,” the expert says. “They are a trial-and-error company. So maybe they will wait first to see how it goes in France.”