Arcom temporarily does not award local DTT frequency for the Paris region

Paris – 29 July 2026: French media regulator Arcom has concluded the allocation procedure for a local, free-to-air DTT television channel in the Paris region without selecting either of the two applicants. Neither Juher Group with its Street & Style project nor Le Média with Le Média TV Île de France will receive the advertised terrestrial transmission capacity. The plan was for a full-day HD slot in the regional Multi 7 multiplex.

Only these two applications had been admitted to the procedure. Arcom confirmed their formal admissibility on 22 April 2026. On 24 June, representatives of both companies presented their concepts at public hearings at the regulator’s headquarters in Paris. The non-selection now announced concludes the procedure without the available capacity being allocated to a new provider.

The current announcement does not provide a more detailed explanation for the rejection of the two projects. However, when allocating terrestrial broadcasting capacity, Arcom does not assess the programming concept alone. Its criteria also include the public interest, the diversity of social and cultural currents, the plurality of providers and potential effects on competition. The applicants’ experience in the media sector and the economic viability of their plans are also taken into account.

Special requirements apply to projects intending to offer news programming. Applicants must explain how they will ensure diversity of opinion and journalistic integrity. They must also set out how editorial independence will be safeguarded from the economic interests of shareholders or financiers. The assessment additionally considers the extent of locally produced content and how closely a channel is genuinely connected to the region.

The advertised capacity was intended for a high-definition regional programme that was to be available without subscription via TNT digital terrestrial television. Multi 7 is used to distribute local programmes in the Greater Paris area. An allocation would have given the selected operator access to households receiving television via antenna, while also securing a place on a heavily regulated and technically limited distribution platform.

For Le Média, this is already its second unsuccessful application for a TNT broadcasting slot within a few years. The company took part in the 2024 procedure for the reallocation of national frequencies but was not selected at that time either. It was again among the small group of admitted candidates in the regional procedure. Following Arcom’s decision, the capacity intended for a local HD channel in the Paris region on the Multi 7 multiplex will remain without a new operator for the time being.