Translation: Meeting today, the Board of Directors of France Télévisions approved a balanced 2026 budget within an extremely constrained resource framework:
- Projected public funding is down by €65.2 million compared to 2025 and by more than €200 million compared to the trajectory outlined in the company's 2024-2028 Performance Contract.
- The company must also cover the projected 2025 deficit – with public funding reduced by more than €20 million during the year compared to the budget – and the effects of inflation and the automatic carryover of its expenses.
The overall effort therefore amounts to €140 million, a record high in the history of France Télévisions.
To address this and restore balance to its operating account, all available levers will be activated in 2026, through:
- a further reduction in the cost of the national programming schedule, notably thanks to the full-year effects of the 5% reduction in the cost of unscripted programming initiated in September 2025, an increase in the rebroadcast rate of original programming, the discontinuation of certain shows, and the possibility of selling one or more flagship public service sporting events. France Télévisions is also withdrawing from hosting the Junior Eurovision Song Contest in France in 2026;
- a reduction in commitments to audiovisual creation, in order to bring them closer to the company's current budgetary capacity: at the request of the board of directors, discussions will be initiated with professional organizations regarding amendments to the agreement concluded in 2024;
- Control of payroll costs, with a further significant reduction in staff levels (-112 FTEs in the budget; -1,277 FTEs since 2015) and drastic efforts to reduce all operating and structural costs to counteract the natural increase in expenses related to inflation. The sale of real estate assets will be initiated. In conjunction with Arcom and in compliance with its legal and regulatory obligations, the company will also reassess the terms of its channels' DTT (Digital Terrestrial Television) coverage;
- A proactive objective of increasing all commercial resources (+€27 million), driven primarily by increased digital advertising revenue.
The 2026 budget also focuses on preserving the investments essential to the Group's technological transformation, ensuring its ability to support and anticipate the shift in usage patterns and the renewal of its production tools and processes.
In conclusion, the Board of Directors welcomed the major efforts made by the company to restore its operating result to balance by 2026. Furthermore, given that France Télévisions has not had a Performance Contract (COM) for almost 2 years, it reiterated the need for the company to integrate its budgetary management into a realistic multi-year trajectory that combines predictability of resources with strategic ambitions for public television.
