Série Club
| Company type | Public |
|---|---|
| Industry | Media conglomerate |
| Founded | March 1987 |
| Founder | CLT (RTL Télévision) and La Lyonnaise des Eaux |
| Headquarters | Paris , France |
Area served | France, international |
Key people | Thomas Rabe (CEO of RTL Group’s parent company, related to Groupe M6) |
| Products | Television channels, radio stations, film and television production and distribution, digital media, publishing, music, live events, e-commerce, sports ownership |
| Owner | RTL Group (major shareholder) |
| Parent | RTL Group |
| Website | www |
Métropole Télévision SA, commonly referred to as Groupe M6 (), is a French media conglomerate centered around the commercial TV channel M6, which was introduced in March 1987 through a collaboration between CLT (RTL Télévision) and La Lyonnaise des Eaux.
The company manages a variety of television channels such as M6, W9, 6ter, Paris Première, Téva, and Série Club. It also previously owned Lagardère’s channels including Gulli, Canal J, TiJi, MCM, MCM Top, and RFM TV. Its holdings extend to radio stations like (RTL, RTL2, and Fun Radio), alongside film and television production and distribution companies, as well as digital media ventures such as online video platforms. Since 1999, Groupe M6 has expanded into sectors including publishing, music and live event production, e-commerce, and sports, notably owning the Football Club of the Girondins de Bordeaux.
In May 2021, Groupe M6 and TF1 Group began exclusive talks to merge into a $4 billion media powerhouse. This merger was officially called off in September 2022. Following this, Thomas Rabe, CEO of RTL Group’s parent company, confirmed that Groupe M6 was available for acquisition after the deal's collapse. By October 2022, RTL Group declared it would maintain its shareholding in Groupe M6.
Television
| Channel | Description | Ownership | Launch Date | Acquisition Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| M6 | Broadcast network | 100% | 1 March 1987 (succeeded TV6) | |
| W9 | Youth-oriented entertainment and music digital channel on DTT | 31 March 2005 | ||
| 6ter | General family digital channel for DTT | 12 December 2012 | ||
| Paris Première | Generalist and cultural pay-TV channel Available on Pay-DTT with some free-to-air content |
15 December 1986 | 6 May 2004 | |
| Téva | Pay-TV channel aimed at female viewers | 6 October 1996 | 2007 | |
| M6 Music | Music-focused pay-TV channel | 5 March 1998 | ||
| Série Club | Pay-TV channel specializing in television series | Equal partnership: 50% with Groupe TF1, 50% Groupe M6 | 8 March 1993 | |
| MCM | Pay-TV youth entertainment and music channel | 100% | 1 July 1989 | 2 September 2019 |
| MCM Top | Pay-TV music channel Distributed in Portugal and Brazil |
28 November 2003 | ||
| RFM TV | Pay-TV music channel Broadcast in Portugal as MCM Pop and also in Brazil |
3 April 2001 | ||
| Gulli | Children’s and family digital terrestrial television channel | 100% (through Jeunesse TV) | 18 November 2005 | |
| Tiji | Pay-TV channel for children younger than seven years old | 15 December 2000 | ||
| Canal J | Pay-TV channel targeting children over seven years old | 23 December 1985 | ||
| M6 Suisse | Swiss regional feed, free-to-air via satellite | 100% (advertising managed by Goldbach Media) | 2 October 2001 | |
| W9 Suisse | 2 August 2011 | |||
| 6ter Suisse | 2014 |
International Channels
| Channel | Overview | Launch Year | Acquisition Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| M6 International | Version broadcast outside Europe | 2019 | |
| Gulli Girl | Children’s channel targeting Russian audience | 2009 | 2 September 2019 |
| Tiji Russie | Preschool programming for Russian viewers | ||
| Gulli Africa | Children’s network tailored for African viewers | 23 March 2015 | |
| Gulli Bil-Arabi | International children’s channel broadcasting in Arabic | 28 June 2017 |
Channels No Longer Operated
All channels listed below were distributed via Pay-TV platforms.
| Channel | Overview | Ownership Percentage | Launch Date | Closure Date | Acquisition Date | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fun TV | Dedicated music channel | 100% | 22 February 1997 | 31 December 2008 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| M6 Music Black | 100% | 10 January 2005 | 4 January 2015 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| M6 Music Club | 100% | 20 January 2009 | 4 January 2015 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| M6 Music Rock | 100% | 10 January 2005 | 20 January 2009 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| M6 Boutique | Home Shopping Service-operated TV shopping channel | 100% | 19 May 1998 | 1 July 2020 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Best of Shopping | TV shopping channel under Home Shopping Service | 100% | 1 October 2003 | 1 July 2020 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Girondins TV | Channel dedicated to FC Girondins de Bordeaux, owned by the club | 100% | 14 August 2008 | 30 October 2018 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| TF6 | Family-oriented generalist channel (joint venture) | 50% Groupe TF1,50% Groupe M6 | 18 December 2000 | 31 December 2014 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| La Chaîne du père Noël | Seasonal children’s programming via Jeunesse TV | 100% | 5 November 2011 | 7 January 2024 | 2 September 2019 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Telekanal Deda Moroza | Seasonal children’s channel broadcasting in Russian | 100% | 1 December 2013 | 2019 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Gulli Brasil | Portuguese-language children’s channel available in Brazil, Luxembourg, and Africa
│ 9 August 2020 │ 18 June 2023 │bgcolor="#C0C0C0"│ } Radio StationsOn 1 October 2017, Groupe M6 finalized the purchase of RTL France from its principal shareholder RTL Group.
Digital Video PlatformsM6 introduced its initial catch-up platform, M6 Replay, on 19 March 2008. Subsequently, on 4 November 2013, M6 Replay combined with W9 Replay and 6ter Replay to create the unified service, 6play. In late 2017, RTL radio stations integrated into this platform. The service operates under the name RTL Play in Belgium and Croatia, and as RTL Most in Hungary. On 14 May 2024, the platform underwent rebranding to become M6+, adopting the same technological infrastructure as Germany's RTL+, developed by Bedrock—a streaming technology company co-owned by Groupe M6 and RTL Group.
Groupe M6 held a stake in Salto, a streaming collaboration with Groupe TF1 and France Télévisions, which operated from its launch in 2020 until shutting down in 2023. Film
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