TF1 Group is a French media holding company. Its best-known property is the broadcast network TF1. The group was formed after TF1 was privatized in April 1987 in which the channel was launched back on 6 January 1975 twelve years prior. It is controlled with a 43% stake by industrial group Bouygues, and is quoted on Euronext Paris.
History
The history of TF1 traces back to 1975, when the Office de Radiodiffusion-Télévision Française (ORTF) was split into 7 successor institutions. Allegedly to provide competition for Canal+, La Cinq and M6, the French government decided to privatize TF1. In April 1987, the construction conglomerate Bouygues won the resulting auction for the sale of TF1, ahead of the Lagardère Group. On 16 April, Francis Bouygues, the president of Bouygues, presented a check of three billion francs to the government, completing the privatisation of TF1.[4]