Movistar Plus+

{{Infobox company

| name = Movistar Plus+

| logo = File:Movistar Plus+ 2022 logo.svg

| caption =

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| trade_name =

| former_name = Movistar+ (2015–2022)

| genre =

| fate =

| predecessor = {{unbulleted list|Canal+|Movistar TV}}

| successor =

| foundation = 8 July 2015

| founder = {{plainlist |

}}

| defunct =

| location_city = Avenida de los Artesanos, 6
28760 Tres Cantos, Madrid

| location_country = Spain

| location =

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| key_people = Cristina Burzako{{cite web |url=https://www.mundoplus.tv/tv-digital/movistar-renueva-su-estructura-para-fortalecer-su-liderazgo/ |title=Movistar+ renueva su estructura para fortalecer su liderazgo |date=26 June 2021 |access-date=24 January 2022 |work=Mundoplus |language=es}}

| industry = Pay television

| products = Satellite television
IPTV

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| parent = {{Lang|es|Telefónica, S.A.|italic=no}}

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| homepage = {{official website}}

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}}

Movistar Plus+ (formerly Movistar+) is the trade name of the subscription platform for digital television owned by {{Lang|es|Telefónica|italic=no}}, which operates in Spain. The service is distributed via optical fiber and ADSL as well as with satellites such as Astra. The platform, which was officially launched on July 8, 2015, stems from the merger of Canal+, previously responsible for the satellite TV operations, and Telefónica's Movistar TV. It is the largest subscription television provider in Spain with 3.7 million customers and 45% of market share.{{Cite web |work=CNMCData |title=Informe Trimestral |url=http://data.cnmc.es/datagraph/jsp/inf_trim.jsp |access-date=22 May 2022 |language=es |archive-date=23 April 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220423083054/http://data.cnmc.es/datagraph/jsp/inf_trim.jsp |url-status=dead }}

History

{{See also|Canal+ (Spanish TV provider)|label 1=Canal+ (Spanish satellite broadcasting company)|Movistar TV}}Since 2013, various news regarding the possible purchase of Canal+'s Spanish assets by Telefónica were published. According to media reports, there were also many companies that expressed interest in buing the Pay-TV platform, as Al Jazeera, Vivendi, which owned Canal+ France, and Rupert Murdoch. This was critical for PRISA, owners of Canal+ Spain, as they had been looking for ways to resolve the debt the company had been accumulating since 2008, as a result of the 2007–2008 financial crisis,{{cite news |last=Marco |first=Agustín |date=7 February 2013 |title=Telefónica negocia la compra de Canal+ a Prisa para salvarla de los bancos |language=es |newspaper=El Confidencial |publisher=Titania Compañía Editorial, S.L. |url=http://www.elconfidencial.com/economia/2013-02-07/telefonica-negocia-la-compra-de-digital-a-prisa-para-salvarla-de-los-bancos_417270/ |access-date=6 March 2019}} with rumors of an acquisition by Telefónica beginning to take place as early as that year.{{cite news |date=8 September 2008 |title=La negociación de venta Digital+ empezará pronto, según fuentes |language=es |work=Reuters |url=http://es.reuters.com/article/businessNews/idESTIS83478820080908 |url-status=dead |access-date=6 March 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150712114601/http://es.reuters.com/article/businessNews/idESTIS83478820080908 |archive-date=12 July 2015}}

On May 6, 2014, {{Lang|es|Telefónica|italic=no}} submitted a binding to gain 56% PRISA had in Canal+ Spain, in exchange for paying about 725 million euros. PRISA ended up accepting the offer the following month.{{cite news |last=Jiménez |first=Miguel |date=2 June 2014 |title=PRISA firma la venta del 56% de Canal+ a Telefónica por 750 millones |language=es |newspaper=El País |publisher=Prisa |location=Madrid |url=http://economia.elpais.com/economia/2014/06/02/actualidad/1401722938_860022.html |access-date=6 March 2019}}

On June 18, 2014, {{Lang|es|Telefónica|italic=no}} submitted a binding offer to acquire Mediaset Spain's 22% ownership of Canal+ Spain for 295 million euros. The offer was later accepted on July 4, 2014, allowing {{Lang|es|Telefónica|italic=no}} to obtain full control of the company.{{cite news |title=Mediaset acepta la oferta de Telefónica por su 22% de Canal+, según medios |url=http://www.reuters.es/article/businessNews/idESKBN0F815U20140703 |agency=Reuters |date=3 July 2014 |access-date=6 March 2019 |location=Madrid |language=es}}

On April 22, 2015, the CNMC gave its approval to the sale of Canal+ to {{Lang|es|Telefónica|italic=no}}. After this, Canal+ began the process of merging with Movistar TV effective July 7, 2015, which resulted in the creation of Movistar+ the following day.

In June 2019, an over-the-top video streaming service was launched under the brand Movistar+ Lite. It features select content but not LaLiga football matches or cinema and series exclusives. The streaming offer saw a complete overhaul on August 1, 2023, now offering a larger amount of content and the majority of the linear TV channels available on the satellite and IPTV offers, making the service more similar to Sky's Now.

Over the course of 2023, Movistar Plus+ renewed its deals with all major Hollywood Studios to continue offering their content on the Spanish TV platform. All television channels in Spain from Sony Pictures Entertainment, The Walt Disney Company, Warner Bros. Discovery, Paramount Global and Comcast continued to be broadcast on Movistar Plus+. This also saw the incorporation of the studios' content directly on Movistar Plus+'s video-on-demand services, with said content coming directly from Sony's AXN Now, Warner Bros. Discovery's HBO Max and Paramount and Comcast's SkyShowtime, while Disney's content is available through the offer of subscriptions to Disney+ at a discounted price.{{cite news |title=Movistar Plus+ y Sony Pictures Entertainment renuevan su acuerdo, que incluye la extensión de la transmisión de los canales AXN y AXN NOW|url=https://comunicacion.movistarplus.es/email/movistar-plus-y-sony-pictures-entertainment-renuevan-su-acuerdo-que-incluye-nuevos-canales-de-axn-y-axn-now/ |agency=Movistar Plus+ |date=12 May 2023 |access-date=18 December 2023 |location=Madrid |language=es}}{{cite news |title=Movistar Plus+ y The Walt Disney Company Iberia renuevan su acuerdo de colaboración|url=https://comunicacion.movistarplus.es/nota-de-prensa/movistar-plus-y-the-walt-disney-company-iberia-renuevan-su-acuerdo-de-colaboracion/ |agency=Movistar Plus+ |date=18 December 2023 |access-date=18 December 2023 |location=Madrid |language=es}}{{cite news |title=Movistar Plus+ y Warner Bros. Discovery alcanzan un acuerdo estratégico que formulará la oferta de entretenimiento más competitiva de España|url=https://comunicacion.movistarplus.es/nota-de-prensa/movistar-plus-y-warner-bros-discovery-alcanzan-un-acuerdo-estrategico-que-formulara-la-oferta-de-entretenimiento-mas-competitiva-de-espana/ |agency=Movistar Plus+ |date=15 December 2023 |access-date=18 December 2023 |location=Madrid |language=es}}{{cite news |title=Movistar Plus+ lanzará SkyShowtime, convirtiéndose en la mejor oferta de entretenimiento en España|url=https://comunicacion.movistarplus.es/nota-de-prensa/movistar-plus-lanzara-skyshowtime-convirtiendose-en-la-mejor-oferta-de-entretenimiento/ |agency=Movistar Plus+ |date=15 December 2023 |access-date=18 December 2023 |location=Madrid |language=es}}

In January 2024, after earlier exceptional involvements in film production with While at War (2019) and Prison 77 (2022), Movistar Plus+ announced a strategy to act as co-producer of films on a sustained basis, presenting a slate of 5 initial titles set to begin production in 2024 and to be directed by Icíar Bollaín (I'm Nevenka), Rodrigo Sorogoyen (The Beloved), Alberto Rodríguez (Los Tigres), Oliver Laxe (Sirât), and Ana Rujas (El desencanto).{{Cite web|url=https://www.eldiario.es/cultura/cine/movistar-plus-producira-nuevo-rodrigo-sorogoyen-iciar-bollain-alberto-rodriguez-oliver-laxe_1_10847920.html|website=eldiario.es|date=18 January 2024|first=Javier|last=Zurro|title=Movistar Plus+ producirá lo nuevo de Rodrigo Sorogoyen, Icíar Bollaín, Alberto Rodríguez y Oliver Laxe}}

On 28 January 2025, Movistar Plus+ revived the original name of the Cine por M+ channel — which was renamed Estrenos por M+—{{Cite web |last=Goñi |first=David |date=2025-01-27 |title=Esta es la programación del nuevo canal Estrenos por M+ en Movistar Plus+ |url=https://www.mundoplus.tv/tv-digital/esta-es-la-programacion-del-nuevo-canal-estrenos-por-m-en-movistar-plus/ |access-date=2025-02-21 |website=mundoplus.tv |language=es}} and replaced Series por M+ with a new blockbuster movie channel, Hits por M+.{{Cite web |last=Goñi |first=David |date=2025-01-28 |title=Llega Hits a Movistar Plus+, el nuevo canal de cine y esta es su programación |url=https://www.mundoplus.tv/tv-digital/llega-hits-a-movistar-plus-el-nuevo-canal-de-cine-y-esta-es-su-programacion/ |access-date=2025-02-21 |website=mundoplus.tv |language=es}} Likewise, Caza y Pesca became part of the platform's basic package.{{Cite web |last=Goñi |first=David |date=2025-01-28 |title=Caza y Pesca llega al paquete básico de Movistar Plus+ |url=https://www.mundoplus.tv/tv-digital/caza-y-pesca-llega-al-paquete-basico-de-movistar-plus/ |access-date=2025-02-21 |website=mundoplus.tv |language=es}} These changes were carried out after the departure of AMC Networks' channels from the platform, effective 1 January 2025, which prompted the operator to reorganize its offering of its own channels to compensate for the disappearance of these signals.{{Cite web |last=verTele |first=Redacción |date=2024-12-16 |title=Movistar Plus+ dejará de tener los 14 canales de AMC Networks desde el 1 de enero de 2025 |url=https://www.eldiario.es/vertele/noticias/movistar-plus-dejara-14-canales-amc-networks-1-enero-2025_1_11905905.html |access-date=2025-02-21 |website=Vertele |language=es}}

In 2025, Movistar Plus+ sacked Director of Fiction & Entertainment Domingo Corral, the chief responsible for the platform's move into scripted originals after joining in 2014. He was replaced by Jorge Pezzi (fiction) and Hugo Tomás (non-fiction and entertainment).{{Cite web|website=Deadline Hollywood|first=Jesse|last=Whittock|title=Javier Bardem, Penelope Cruz & Pedro Almodovar Among Stars Signing Open Letter In Support Of Exiting Movistar Exec Domingo Corral – Reports|date=8 May 2025|url=https://deadline.com/2025/05/bardem-cruz-sign-open-letter-supporting-domingo-corral-1236389728/}} This decision "stunned" the Spanish audiovisual industry and prompted a letter of support to Corral by near 150 figures of the entertainment industry.{{Cite web|url=https://variety.com/2025/film/global/domingo-corral-exits-movistar-plus-1236394463/|website=Variety|title=Spain’s Stellar Cannes Presence Clouded by Uncertainty as Industry Champion Domingo Corral Exits Movistar Plus+|first=Jamie|last=Lang|date=12 May 2025}}{{Refn|group=n.|Including Agustín Almodóvar, Alauda Ruiz de Azúa, Albert Pla, Alberto Marini, Alberto Rodríguez, Alejandro Amenábar, Alex Brendemühl, Alex García, Álvaro Morte, Ana Polvorosa, Ana Rujas, Andreu Buenafuente, Antonio de la Torre, Bárbara Lennie, Berto Romero, Brays Efe, Candela Peña, Carmen Machi, Cecilia Roth, Cesc Gay, Dani de la Torre, Daniel Guzmán, Darío Grandinetti, Eduard Fernández, Emma Suárez, Ernesto Alterio, Esther García, Fernando González Molina, Fernando Guallar, Fernando Méndez-Leite, Francesc Orella, Francesco Carril, Francis Lorenzo, Greta Fernández, Hugo Silva, Icíar Bollaín, Imanol Arias, Irene Escolar, Iria del Río, Isa Campo, Isabel Peña, Isaki Lacuesta, Javier Ambrossi, Javier Bardem, Javier Calvo, Javier Cámara, Javier Gutiérrez, Javier Ruiz Caldera, José Manuel Lorenzo, Juan Diego Botto, Juan Echanove, Leiva, Leonardo Sbaraglia, Leticia Dolera, Lola Dueñas, Luis Tosar, Luis Zahera, Macarena Garcia, Manolo Solo, Mar Coll, Marcel Barrena, María León, Marta Etura, Miren Ibarguren, Mónica López, Nacho Vigalondo, Nathalie Poza, Oliver Laxe, Pablo Molinero, Paco León, Patricia López Arnaiz, Patrick Criado, Pedro Casablanc, Pedro Almodóvar, Penélope Cruz, Rafael Cobos, Raúl Arévalo, Raül Refree, Rodrigo Sorogoyen, Roger Casamajor, Sergi López, Sergio Peris-Mencheta, Verónica Sánchez, and Victoria Luengo.}}