TVFI braces for drastic funding cut

Television France International faces losing a significant chunk of its funding and is making cutbacks.

The industry group, which promotes French content in international markets, receives Euro1 million of its Euro4.2 million annual budget from the French state. But uncertainty surrounds the future of the government body that allocates the TVFI funding.

Currently, the Direction l’Audiovisuel Exterieur, part of the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs, is responsible for funding TVFI. As part of wider, sweeping reforms in France this division could cease to exist. Irrespective of that, responsibility for funding TVFI will shift elsewhere and there is a question mark over how much if anything it will get.

In advance of any cuts TVFI has frozen its advertising budget and Xavier Chevrau, who was head of external affairs, has left the organisation.

The Euro1.9 million it receives from the CNC and the separate chunk it gets from French producers is not under threat. But TVFI executive director Mathieu Bejot told TBIvision that without the state funding it will have to cut staff, reduce the number of programming markets it attends and roadshows that it organises.

TVFI finalises its budgets in the autumn and the final decisions on TVFI funding will become clear later this year.