M6 signs 2006 World Cup broadcasting deal

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Infront Sports & Media has signed its second television agreement in France for the 2006 FIFA World Cup. The television network, M6, has acquired free-TV terrestrial broadcast rights in France for the 2006 FIFA World Cup and will cover 31 of the 64 matches live.

M6, which is part of the RTL Group, has also reached an agreement with Infront to utilize the turnkey HDTV signal produced by HBS. HBS is the dedicated Host Broadcaster of the 2006 FIFA World Cup and is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Infront.

Oliver Seibert, an Executive Director of Infront, said: "We are very pleased to have finalized this deal in another key European market. This agreement will ensure that French viewers have major free-TV coverage to enjoy next year's FIFA World Cup." Nicolas de Tavernost, CEO and Chairman of the Executive Board Committee of M6, said: "This is a major agreement for M6 - confirming our commitment to French viewers for offering the very best football coverage."

This is the second major free-TV agreement announced by Infront for France. Through an agreement signed in 2001, France's national broadcaster, TF1 has the right to show the "match of the day" exclusively during the 2006 competition.