France Médias Monde is a French state-owned

holding company A holding company is a company whose primary business is holding a controlling interest in the securities of other companies. A holding company usually does not produce goods or services itself. Its purpose is to own shares of other companies ...

which supervises and co-ordinates the activities of the major public media organizations broadcasting or publishing internationally from France. The company's subsidiaries are the radio broadcasters

Radio France Internationale Radio France Internationale, usually referred to as RFI, is the state-owned international radio broadcaster of France. With 37.2 million listeners in 2014, it is one of the most-listened-to international radio stations in the world, along with ...

(RFI) and

Monte Carlo Doualiya Monte Carlo Doualiya (MCD), formerly known as RMC Moyen-Orient ( en, Radio Monte Carlo Middle East), is a French public radio service that broadcasts across the Arab world. It was founded in 1972 and, like Radio France Internationale (RFI) is pa ...

(MCD), and the television news broadcaster

France 24 France 24 ( in French) is a French state-owned international news television network based in Paris. Its channels broadcast in French, English, Arabic, and Spanish and are aimed at the overseas market. Based in the Paris suburb of Issy-les-Mo ...

. The company also has a 12.5% stake in the general entertainment and news network

TV5Monde TV5Monde (), formerly known as TV5, is a French public television network, broadcasting several channels of French-language programming. It is an approved participant member of the European Broadcasting Union. The network is available across ...

History

Beginnings as Société de l'audiovisuel extérieur de la France (2008–2013)

Birth of the idea as 'France Monde'

France Monde was the name of the initial project to house the various international branches of French external broadcasting under one roof, including

Radio France International Radio France Internationale, usually referred to as RFI, is the state-owned international radio broadcaster of France. With 37.2 million listeners in 2014, it is one of the most-listened-to international radio stations in the world, along with ...

and the French State's holdings in

. The shares that were in question were 100% of

, 66.61% of

(the remaining capital is held by the partner channels and some private investors) and 50% of France 24 (with the remainder held by TF1). On 21 February 2008, it was announced the

CEO A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especially ...

of the network was appointed by French president Nicolas Sarkozy, as Alain de Pouzilhac, the former president of France 24, with Christine Ockrent, a journalist, serving as 'directrice générale déléguée' or 'Vice President'. The appointment of Alain de Pouzilhac was met with strong hostility of the unions of the companies concerned. On Wednesday 17 September 2008, the director of France 24, Grégoire Deniau, quit his post and France 24's editor Bertrand Coq was made redundant. This inflamed the already tense atmosphere created over de Pouzilhac's role in the network

Creation of the 'Société de l'audiovisuel extérieur de la France (SAEF)'

Once the idea had been solidified, it was renamed the 'Society of Exterior Audiovisual of France' (SAEF). The former French president

Nicolas Sarkozy Nicolas Paul Stéphane Sarközy de Nagy-Bocsa (; ; born 28 January 1955) is a French politician who served as President of France from 2007 to 2012. Born in Paris, he is of Hungarian, Greek Jewish, and French origin. Mayor of Neuilly-sur-Se ...

stated that the SAEF would serve as an alternative to the BBC, CNN or

Al Jazeera Al Jazeera ( ar, الجزيرة, translit-std=DIN, translit=al-jazīrah, , "The Island") is a state-owned Arabic-language international radio and TV broadcaster of Qatar. It is based in Doha and operated by the media conglomerate Al Jazee ...

. It was expected that the combined funding, plus additional advertising revenue, would total €400 million.

Revelations of power struggle between Ockrent and de Pouzilhac

At the end of 2010, the internal conflict between the two leaders de Pouzilhac and Ockrent broke out during an internal spying affair revealed by French newspaper Le Point. Christine Ockrent was therefore massively repudiated by the management teams at both SAEF and France 24. Two years later, de Pouzilhac tended his resignation on 12 July 2012. After the announcement, he was replaced by Marie-Christine Saragosse. After his resignation, Ockrent demanded €650,000 in severance payments, due to her being removed from vice-presidency as a result.

Rebirth as France Médias Monde

On 27 June 2013, AEF become France Médias Monde. With the rebrand, the holding company began to market itself explicitly for the first time, with new websites and branding created for all companies in the group, with 'A France Médias Monde channel' featured on France 24 press releases under its logo, and France Médias Monde links featured on each of its websites to emphasise the grouping of the different broadcasters. The company was backed up by the signature of the first contract of objectives and means between the French State and the newly coined 'France Médias Monde' on 9 April 2014.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:France Medias Monde 2008 establishments in France Holding companies established in 2008 Mass media companies established in 2008 French-language television networks French news websites Television companies of France Publicly funded broadcasters