Exports of French TV programs plunge to 10-year low

International sales of French audiovisual programs fell by 21.6% in 2025, to 164.3 million euros.

French television is experiencing a serious slowdown abroad. According to the report presented by the CNC and Unifrance during the Unifrance Rendez-Vous in Le Havre, international sales of French audiovisual programs reached 164.3 million euros in 2025, a fall of 21.6% in one year. This is the lowest level recorded in ten years.

The contrast with 2024 is particularly brutal. That year, exports increased by 3%, reaching 209.6 million euros, their second best level in thirty years. But in 2025, the sector has been hit hard by “a deteriorating economic environment and numerous uncertainties”, according to the report.

Fiction remains the leading exported genre, with 33.4% of international sales, for the fourth consecutive year. But it shows a particularly marked decline: 54.9 million euros, or 27% less than in 2024. We have to go back to 2018 to find a double-digit decline in French fiction internationally.

In this context, foreign buyers are increasingly focusing on proven formats. Police series and investigations with light tones remain particularly sought after, with Astrid et Raphaëlle, Tropiques Crimes and Alexandra Ehle among the programs which sell best.

The report also highlights a reduction in gender diversity, in favor of a more standardized offer. Some productions, however, manage to do well, such as the true crime mini-series Sambre or the steampunk science fiction series The Sentinels, set during the First World War.

Documentary holds up better than fiction and animation

More surprisingly, documentaries overtake animation for the first time and now represent 26.2% of international sales. Its exports certainly fell by 2.7%, to 43.1 million euros, but this drop remains limited compared to other types and the sector is almost within its average of the last ten years.

Europe remains by far the main market for French documentaries, with more than half of sales made in Western Europe. But here again, the obstacles to exporting are increasing. Broadcasters favor content anchored in their own territory and their own issues, which makes certain French productions less easy to sell abroad.

Animation, on the other hand, is going through a particularly difficult period. After several very solid years, it now represents only 19.6% of sales, its lowest level ever recorded. Exports fell by 30.3% in one year, reaching only 32.2 million euros.

To explain this situation, the CNC and Unifrance particularly point to an increasingly saturated international market. Buyers are now increasingly favoring well-known brands and intellectual properties, even as global production continues to increase despite slowing demand.

After a still very dynamic year in 2024, 2025 therefore marks a clear turnaround for French audiovisual exports. And the report suggests that the international market will now have to deal with more cautious broadcasters, budgets under pressure and a demand increasingly oriented towards local content and already identified franchises.