In what could be seen as the beginning of a comeback of sorts for linear television, Netflix has announced that it will begin carrying linear channels from France’s largest commercial broadcaster, TF1, in summer 2025.

Once the partnership is underway, all Netflix subscribers in France will be able to stream channels from the TF1 Group directly from within the Netflix app. This includes five channels — TF1, TF1 Séries Films, TFX, TMC, and TF1 Group HD — along with access to on-demand content. In total, users will gain access to more than 30,000 hours of programming from the group, including scripted series, reality programming (like The Voice), and sports broadcasts.

The move is certainly unexpected on the surface, given that Netflix’s success for decades has been driven by the cable industry’s decline. However, the reality is that the two parties have been working together for some time, such as on the historical drama Les Combattantes, which Netflix and TF1 produced in 2018.

Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. However, the arrangement is clearly more than just a one-off deal. Netflix co-CEO Greg Peters said the deal “will provide French consumers with more reasons to visit Netflix every day and more reasons to stay on Netflix for all their entertainment needs.”

On TF1’s end, it provides the company with an entirely new avenue for revenue, which includes advertising. Linear programs will still include commercials, which will now reach a new audience, as well as the original program content.

“We are following up on our plan to create innovative alliances that will strengthen TF1’s presence on all platforms,” said TF1 CEO Rodolphe Belmer. “In the face of changes in the ways of consumption and the fragmentation of audiences, this unprecedented alliance will allow us to broadcast our top-quality content to unprecedented audiences.”

Belmer added that the deal will be a key revenue driver for the company, as it complements its own streaming service TF1+, providing advertising on a different platform.

Not only does this arrangement help Netflix meet a key regulatory requirement, but it will allow the company to reach new audiences. TF1’s channels already have an audience of about 58 million viewers per month, and TF1+ has 35 million users per month, according to FT. Meanwhile, Netflix had less than 10 million subscribers in France in 2022, co-CEO Ted Sarandos said in April.

In addition, if the deal proves successful, it could open the door to other broadcasting deals. “We’ll take some time to observe and evaluate the success of the TF1 launch before moving forward on any additional agreements,” Peters said.

The arrangement follows another emerging trend: media consumption. Just this week, Nielsen announced that streaming passed cable for the first time, becoming the most popular method of television viewing in May, reaching 44.8% of all TV consumption, compared to 24.1% for cable and 20.1% for broadcast.

Now that streaming is overtaking traditional TV, linear networks that were originally threatened by the rise of services like Netflix could be bolstered by these same services, potentially living on in new ways. It’s an evolution that’s already being embraced by TF1.

“The end of linear TV is a done deal, it’s coming, it’s coming, it’s coming,” said Belmer. “We’ve been trying to offset it, we’ve been compensating for it, we’ve been doing so with our free-to-view platform. But also by getting on the bandwagon and taking advantage of the powerful drive of Netflix.”