Canal+ CEO Maxime Saada Says He Met Reed Hastings And Convinced Him French Pay-TV Giant Was A Partner, “Not A Competitor” — Mipcom Cannes

Jesse Whittock
·2 min read
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Canal+ Chairman and CEO Maxime Saada has recalled how he travelled to Los Gatos with an olive branch six years ago.

In a keynote interview at Mipcom Cannes this past hour, Saada said his “obsession” with ensuring pay-TV giant Canal+ “stays alive” led him to travel to Netflix’s headquarters for a “very long conversation” with Reed Hastings.

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Saada was trying to reduce Canal+’s dependency on its French pay business and diversify, and wanted to convince Hastings that the two companies could co-exist, even if both were chasing subscribers.

“I tried to convince him we were not necessarily competitors and that he was on the same side as Canal+ as he was trying to get people to pay for TV content,” he added.

Saada, who became Canal+ CEO in 2015, said his theory was ultimately correct as the two companies struck a carriage agreement in 2019. “Reed said we were competitors but I think I proved otherwise,”

Canal+ now offers several international streaming services bundled with its pay-TV service and has further reduced its dependency on French subs by expanding internationally — taking stakes in the likes of Multichoice and Viaplay.

Saada paid tribute to Hasting and his streaming business, saying: “We owe so much to Netflix, because they showed the way, that movies and TV can travel.”

Close calls

Saada said Canal+’s rocky history as he storied several close calls. “It’s a company that has almost died, several times,” he added. “Right after it launched in 1984, it was a hit and then a gigantic failure for a while. It was on the brink of disaster and that happened several times over its history. I joined in 2004 after 2002-3 when it was also on the brink of disaster and we had a very difficult time when I was appointed CEO as well.”

The knowledge of this meant he had “developed survivor’s syndrome,” adding: “My passions are driven by my obsession for the company to survive. It’s a very different mindset to when you’re on the offensive and a global player like Netflix with the resources to do that.

Under Saada’s leadership, the Vivendi-owned company Canal+ has gone from 11 million subscribers in 2015 to over 25 million across 50 territories since Saada became CEO.

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