Its headquarters put up for sale in Confluence, again grounds for concern around the future of Euronews in Lyon
It is an old sea serpent, fortunately never materialized until now, which comes out with its head above the water of the Rhône: that of a departure from Lyon from the European news channel Euronews in Lyon since 1993 and in Confluence since 2015. Our colleague “Le Monde” has indeed announced the sale of its headquarters, the famous fluorescent green cube which makes it one of the attractions of the business and media district.
It is true with its shape for the less original, a six-storey neon green cube coated in metallic resin and hollowed out by two large vortices to bring light inside, designed by star architects Jakob & Macfarlane, this seat based in the Confluence district plays the card of modernity.
Illustrating with this tangy color the ambition of a chain which was intended to be the pendant of the American CNN.
Its history, because of its mode of creation, has proved to be complicated and not always one of the ambitions originally put forward.
Put into orbit by the public EBU
It should indeed be remembered that Euronews was originally put into orbit by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), a structure which brings together twenty European public channels including France Télévisions. A birth that was made in pain, given the number of godfathers…
But which allowed Lyon to obtain the installation of the chain in Lyon in 1993, against two competing cities, Munich in Germany and Valencia in Spain; before the migration of its headquarters to Confluence in 2015 which gave rise to a beautiful inauguration.
It is also true that the history of Euronews, a channel which broadcasts in thirteen languages, has not always been a long calm river, its economic balance proving difficult to find since the company has become essentially private.
Indeed, the EBU has gradually withdrawn from its baby, enabling the company to find new sources of private financing. By choosing in particular to turn to commercial contracts signed with several countries, including the Arab States of the Gulf, which can prove to be a combination for a chain which wants to be European-European.
A new shareholder
Another astonishment, during its recent history, in this quest for private financing, its majority shareholder was the billionaire of Egyptian origin Naguib Sawiris, deposited in the telecoms which had paid it 35 million euros, giving it the means of its ambitions.
Or, change of shareholder and return to Europe: Euronews now has a majority ownership, since July, of the Portuguese investment fund Alpac Capital, which manages a fund of 500 million euros. A fund which, when buying 88% of the shares of Naguib Sawiris, intended to affirm the channel’s “unique European DNA”.
In short, all this does not favor a long-standing Lyonnais anchor, which feeds the concerns of journalists among the requested figure therefore the announced sale of the superb headquarters of a chain which currently has 500 employees.
“Le Monde” also specifies that “the total or partial removal of the neon green headquarters of Confluence will depend on the purchaser”; but “that nothing is decided at this stage”.
Nothing too exciting anyway. To be continued…