Luxembourg, 13 April 2023 – CANAL+ Group and M7 Group have decided to exercise their call option on the 30% remaining shares of SPI International and therefore to acquire full ownership of the company. Effective as of 12th of April, Mr. Berk Uziyel and Mr. Loni Farhi will step down from their roles in SPI International. Mr. Erwan Luherne and Mr. Jeroen Bergman have taken over their respective responsibilities and roles.
Mr. Luherne, Director of Business integration for Canal+ International, and Mr. Bergman, Board Member of M7 Group responsible for Content and Business Development, will keep working closely with CANAL+ Group and M7 Group to continue to deliver top-quality content to audiences across the globe, while also driving innovation, growth, and strategic synergies within CANAL+ Group.
Mr. Luherne, Director of Business integration for Canal+ International, appointed Managing Director of SPI INTERNATIONAL, has spent more than 18 years within the CANAL+ Group in numerous positions related to the development of the group's activities internationally (Africa and Asia in particular). Mr. Luherne has been previously CEO of Canal+ Myanmar, Director of Marketing and Commercial development for Canal+ International, Director of Commercial Development Canal+ entity in Vietnam.
Mr Bergman, now Board Member of M7 Group responsible for Content and Business Development, looks back at a long-standing career in the media and telco industry, including 20 years at Liberty Global, where he was responsible for all programming and content acquisition. Before Liberty he was Commercial Director for Dutch cable company Casema (currently Ziggo). Since 2019 Jeroen was managing the Film1 and Filmbox business in the Netherlands for SPI International.
Since its inception, SPI INTERNATIONAL has become a leading provider in the Media and Broadcast Industry, thanks in large part to the dedication, creativity, and leadership of its team and founders Loni Farhi and Berk Uziyel.
"SPI International has a long history of providing top-quality content to audiences around the world, and we are eager to take the company to a new stage of its development. Both Erwan and Jeroen have strong track records in the business so I have great confidence they will continue to bring great success to SPI" said Mr. Hans Troelstra, CEO of M7 Group.
"We are committed to build on the company's strong foundations and leverage the CANAL+ Group collective expertise to continue providing engaging and relevant content to viewers." Said Mr. Erwan Luherne and Mr. Jeroen Bergman.
SPI International is pleased to announce the launch of FilmBox Action on StarTimes, one of the leading TV operators in Africa. Starting April 1st, 2023, FilmBox Action will be available in the Basic and Smart packages on DTT at channel number 60 and DTH at channel 140, respectively.
"We are excited to expand our relationship with StarTimes and bring FilmBox Action to their platform. We are long term partners and we believe Filmbox Action is the perfect addition to the Startimes existing movie offering. Together we have already made Dizi channel, our Turkish drama channel a huge success and we expect the same for Filmbox Action,”commented Georgina Twiss, MD of Western Europe and Africa at SPI International.
FilmBox Action is a premium movie channel that offers a variety of action-packed movies and series, including Hollywood blockbusters starring A-list action cinema stars like Bruce Willis, Jean-Claude Van Damme, Jet Li, Jackie Chan and many others. With its unique selection of adrenaline-fueled programming, the channel is set to become a go-to destination for action fans in Africa.
“To keep offering fresh content of quality on StarTimes is one of our long-term pursuits,” said Lily Meng, Head of StarTimes Media Division. “We enjoy the collaboration with SPI International and trust that the synergy will lead to more fascinating chemical reactions in future, which can benefit our audiences across Africa. FilmBox Action will definitely prove its charm once it’s on air. Stay tuned to StarTimes for all these exciting movies and series!”
About Startimes
StarTimes is the leading digital TV operator in Africa, serving 16 million DVB subscribers and 28 million OTT users in 30+ countries. StarTimes owns a 700+ channels’ content platform combining African local channels (75%) and international channels (25%). The company's vision is "To ensure that every African family can access, afford, watch and share the beauty of digital TV".
About SPI INTERNATIONAL
SPI INTERNATIONAL (a CANAL+ company) is a global media company operating 62 TV channels, multiple digital products across six continents, and is a major player in content distribution and broadcasting worldwide. SPI operates multiple free-to-air and pay-TV channels in CEE, Western Europe, Asia, and Adria regions including key European markets such as Poland, Czechia, Romania, Serbia and the Netherlands. SPI Group owns a suite of legacy brands that have become household names such as FilmBox, Film1, Kino Polska, Stopklatka, Dizi along with different thematic channels and streaming services, including FilmBox+. Working with over 700 operators worldwide, SPI uses cutting-edge technology providing its subscribers with access to SPI’s linear and on-demand content. For over 25 years, SPI INTERNATIONAL has been a leading supplier of theatrical films and television programming in the international markets. SPI’s solid alliances with major license suppliers provide compelling content, with strong recognition and high demand. www.spiintl.com
SPI INTERNATIONAL, a CANAL+ company that operates multiple streaming services, TV and FAST channels worldwide, partners with THEMA to distribute the Dizi channel in Arabic to French network operators. The channel that broadcasts critically-acclaimed and globally renowned Turkish drama series will be available to Free and SFR subscribers in the Maghreb package.
“Turkish series have become a global phenomenon with many fans around the world. I’m sure that, Arabic-speaking fans of Turkish series in France will be particularly happy to hear about our partnership with THEMA to bring Dizi to enrich their offer, with over 500 hours of some of the best Turkish series with the most popular stars to their TV screens,” commented Georgina Twiss, MD Western Europe and Africa.
Timothée Vidal, SVP Multicultural Distribution and Digital at Thema: “Thema is delighted to welcome Dizi into the offer "Le bouquet Maghreb". The quality and diversity of the programs offered by this channel reinforce the attractiveness of our offer, leader on Arabic-speaking diasporas segment and available in all TV operators in France”
About THEMA:
THEMA is a distributor of pay TV channels, Fast channels and non-linear contents to cable, IPTV, DTH, operators and also for mobile packages and OTT. THEMA helps the development of more than 180 TV channels worldwide and builds strong partnerships with major pay TV platforms in France, Europe, Africa, Middle East, Asia, Canada and USA/LATAM.
About SPI INTERNATIONAL:
SPI international (a CANAL+ company) is a global media company operating 62 TV channels, multiple digital products across six continents, and a major player in content distribution and broadcasting worldwide. SPI operates multiple free-to-air and pay-TV channels in CEE, Western Europe, Asia and Adria regions including key European markets such as Poland, Czechia, Romania, Serbia and the Netherlands. SPI Group owns a suite of legacy brands that have become household names such as FilmBox, Film1, Kino Polska, Stopklatka, Dizi along with different thematic channels and streaming services, including FilmBox+. Working with over 700 operators worldwide, SPI uses cutting-edge technology providing its subscribers with access to SPI’s linear and on-demand content. For over 25 years, SPI INTERNATIONAL has been a leading supplier of theatrical films and television programming in the international markets. SPI’s solid alliances with major license suppliers provide compelling content, with strong recognition and high demand. www.spiintl.com
Following the successful launch of CANAL+ Sport in the previous months, Skylink, Slovak Telekom, DIGI Slovakia and T-Mobile Czech Republic will enrich their content offering with the brand new CANAL+ Action. Starting February 28th, the channel will be available on Skylink and from March 1st, it will be available on the rest of the operators with Czech dubbing.
The international media company CANAL+ is expanding its activities in the Czech Republic and Slovakia. Starting February 28th, CANAL+ Action which broadcasts action movies and series with Czech dubbing, will be available via satellite and Internet TV on the Skylink and freeSAT platforms. Subscribers to T-Mobile, Slovak Telekom and DIGI Slovakia will have access to the channel as of March 1st. CANAL+ Action will offer selected exclusive titles and Czech and Slovak premieres, such as the critically-acclaimed action comedy Everything Everywhere All at Once, which is nominated for an Oscar in 11 categories.
‘’Following our successful entry into sports broadcasting last year in the Czech Republic and Slovakia, we plan to expand into films and series this year, starting with the action genre. With the launch of CANAL+ Action, we aim to offer viewers high-quality action programming, with minimal advertising interruptions within a single program,’’ commented Ladislav Řeháček, VP CANAL+ Luxembourg for the Czech Republic and Slovakia.
‘’We're thrilled to collaborate with all of our partners and Ladislav Řeháček to introduce CANAL+ Action to new markets. Our mutual goal is to continuously improve the value we provide to our partners and customers while delivering top-notch entertainment across the board,’’ adds Berk Uziyel,CEO of SPI international, which is now part of the CANAL+ Group and in charge of B2B distribution of CANAL+ products within the territory.
In addition to premiere titles, CANAL+ Action will also present popular action evergreens with A-list stars such as The Expendables 2: Back for War and Escape Plan with Sylvester Stallone, Arnold Schwarzenegger and other action legends. During the first month of broadcasting, viewers will be able to watch the Oscar-winning TheRevenant starring Leonardo DiCaprio and the highly rated Canadian series Plan B which explores the implications of time travel and altering the course of events.
CANAL+ Luxembourg will distribute the channel not only through its own satellite and internet TV platform Skylink, but also through the Deutsche Telekom Group companies: T-Mobile Czech Republic, DIGI Slovakia and Slovak Telekom.
"After the summer launch of CANAL+ Sport, this is another premium content that we are presenting to our viewers. At the same time, I am very pleased that we have managed to negotiate a special offer with the international CANAL+ Group and we can therefore introduce the new channel to all T-Mobile TV customers, regardless of tariff, for a minimum of one month. After that, it will be included in the offer of M and higher tariffs," said Zdeněk Spurný, TV and Entertainment Manager at T-Mobile.
"We are pleased that, following the successful cooperation with CANAL+ Sport, the new CANAL+ Action channel will become part of our program catalog and our subscribers can enjoy the high-quality offer of action movies and series," commented Michal Mažár, Marketing and Sales Director of DIGI Slovakia.
"The cooperation with the television company CANAL+ has opened up wider opportunities for the dissemination of interesting television content. After last year's launch of CANAL+ Sport, we are adding a new TV channel from March 1st, which will be appreciated by viewers of action titles. The new CANAL+ Action channel will offer action-themed films, which will include proven classics with immortal actors such as Arnold Schwarzenegger, Sylvester Stallone and Liam Neeson. For viewers who have missed a good dose of adrenaline so far, CANAL+ Action will be deployed from the beginning of March on all TV platforms such as Magio TV via the Internet (Magio GO), Magio IPTV and Magio Sat and will be available in the L and XL programme packages," adds Marcel Šatánek, TV and Entertainment Manager at Slovak Telekom.
About SPI INTERNATIONAL
SPI INTERNATIONAL (a CANAL+ company) is a global media company operating 62 TV channels, multiple digital products across six continents, and a major player in content distribution and broadcasting worldwide. SPI operates multiple free-to-air and pay-TV channels in CEE, Western Europe, Asia and Adria regions including key European markets such as Poland, Czechia, Romania, Serbia and the Netherlands. SPI Group owns a suite of legacy brands that have become household names such as FilmBox, Film1, Kino Polska, Stopklatka, Dizi along with different thematic channels and streaming services, including FilmBox+. Working with over 700 operators worldwide, SPI uses cutting-edge technology providing its subscribers with access to SPI’s linear and on-demand content. For over 25 years, SPI INTERNATIONAL has been a leading supplier of theatrical films and television programming in the international markets. SPI’s solid alliances with major license suppliers provide compelling content, with strong recognition and high demand. www.spiintl.com
