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| Formerly | Movistar+ (2015–2022) |
|---|---|
| Industry | Pay television |
| Predecessor | |
| Founded | 8 July 2015 |
| Founder | |
| Headquarters | Avenida de los Artesanos, 6 28760 Tres Cantos, Madrid, Spain |
| Key people | Cristina Burzako |
| Products | Satellite television IPTV |
| Parent | Telefónica, S.A. |
| Website | Official website  |
Movistar Plus+ (formerly Movistar+) is the trade name of the subscription platform for digital television owned by Telefónica, which operates in Spain. The service is distributed via optical fiber and ADSL as well as with satellites such as Astra. The platform, which was officially launched on July 8, 2015, stems from the merger of Canal+, previously responsible for the satellite TV operations, and Telefónica's Movistar TV. It is the largest subscription television provider in Spain with 3.7 million customers and 45% of market share.
History
See also: Canal+ (Spanish satellite broadcasting company) and Movistar TVSince 2013, various news regarding the possible purchase of Canal+'s Spanish assets by Telefónica were published. According to media reports, there were also many companies that expressed interest in buing the Pay-TV platform, as Al Jazeera, Vivendi, which owned Canal+ France, and Liberty Global mogul Rupert Murdoch. This was critical for PRISA, owners of Canal+ Spain, as they had been looking for ways to resolve the debt the company had been accumulating since 2008, as a result of the 2007–2008 financial crisis, with rumors of an acquisition by Telefónica beginning to take place as early as this year.
On May 6, 2014, Telefónica submitted a binding to gain 56% PRISA had in Canal+ Spain, in exchange for paying about 725 million euros. PRISA ended up accepting the offer the following month.
On June 18, 2014, Telefónica submitted a binding offer to acquire Mediaset Spain's 22% ownership of Canal+ Spain for 295 million euros. The offer was later accepted on July 4, 2014, allowing Telefónica to obtain full control of the company.
On April 22, 2015, the CNMC gave its approval to the sale of Canal+ to Telefónica. After this, Canal+ began the process of merger with Movistar TV until July 7, 2015, which resulted in the creation of Movistar+ the following day.
In June 2019, an over-the-top video streaming service was launched under the brand Movistar+ Lite. It features select content but not LaLiga football matches or cinema and series exclusives. The streaming offer saw a complete overhaul on August 1, 2023, now offering a larger amount of content and the majority of the linear TV channels available on the satellite and IPTV offers, making the service more similar to Sky's Now.
Over the course of 2023, Movistar Plus+ renew its deals with all major Hollywood Studios to continue offer their content on the Spanish TV platform. All television channels in Spain from Sony Pictures Entertainment, The Walt Disney Company, Warner Bros. Discovery, Paramount Global and Comcast will continue to be broadcast on Movistar Plus+. This also saw the incorporation of the studios' content directly on Movistar Plus+'s video on demand services, with said content coming directly from Sony's AXN Now, Warner Discovery's HBO Max and Paramount and Comcast's SkyShowtime, while Disney's content is available through the offer of subscriptions to Disney+ at a discounted price.
In January 2024, after earlier exceptional involvements in film production with While at War (2019) and Prison 77 (2022), Movistar Plus+ announced a strategy to develop as a co-producer of films on a sustained basis, presenting a slate of 5 initial titles set to begin production in 2024 and to be directed by Icíar Bollaín (I'm Nevenka), Rodrigo Sorogoyen (El ser querido), Alberto Rodríguez, Oliver Laxe, and Ana Rujas (El desencanto).
Channels operated by Movistar Plus+
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- All channels but Fútbol Replay are broadcast in HD on fiber.
- All channels but Fútbol Replay, Cine Español por Movistar Plus+ and La Resistencia 24h por M+ have an HD feed available on satellite.
- All channels are broadcast in SD on ADSL.
- LaLigaTV por Movistar Plus+ and Liga de Campeones por Movistar Plus+ (1 & 2) have a 4K feed on fiber for broadcasting selected La Liga and Champions League matches.
References
- "Movistar+ renueva su estructura para fortalecer su liderazgo". Mundoplus (in Spanish). 26 June 2021. Retrieved 24 January 2022.
- "Informe Trimestral". CNMCData (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 23 April 2022. Retrieved 22 May 2022.
- Marco, Agustín (7 February 2013). "Telefónica negocia la compra de Canal+ a Prisa para salvarla de los bancos". El Confidencial (in Spanish). Titania Compañía Editorial, S.L. Retrieved 6 March 2019.
- "La negociación de venta Digital+ empezará pronto, según fuentes". Reuters (in Spanish). 8 September 2008. Archived from the original on 12 July 2015. Retrieved 6 March 2019.
- Jiménez, Miguel (2 June 2014). "PRISA firma la venta del 56% de Canal+ a Telefónica por 750 millones". El País (in Spanish). Madrid: Prisa. Retrieved 6 March 2019.
- "Mediaset acepta la oferta de Telefónica por su 22% de Canal+, según medios" (in Spanish). Madrid. Reuters. 3 July 2014. Retrieved 6 March 2019.
- "Movistar Plus+ y Sony Pictures Entertainment renuevan su acuerdo, que incluye la extensión de la transmisión de los canales AXN y AXN NOW" (in Spanish). Madrid. Movistar Plus+. 12 May 2023. Retrieved 18 December 2023.
- "Movistar Plus+ y The Walt Disney Company Iberia renuevan su acuerdo de colaboración" (in Spanish). Madrid. Movistar Plus+. 18 December 2023. Retrieved 18 December 2023.
- "Movistar Plus+ y Warner Bros. Discovery alcanzan un acuerdo estratégico que formulará la oferta de entretenimiento más competitiva de España" (in Spanish). Madrid. Movistar Plus+. 15 December 2023. Retrieved 18 December 2023.
- "Movistar Plus+ lanzará SkyShowtime, convirtiéndose en la mejor oferta de entretenimiento en España" (in Spanish). Madrid. Movistar Plus+. 15 December 2023. Retrieved 18 December 2023.
- Zurro, Javier (18 January 2024). "Movistar Plus+ producirá lo nuevo de Rodrigo Sorogoyen, Icíar Bollaín, Alberto Rodríguez y Oliver Laxe". eldiario.es.
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