After failing to reach agreements with major pay-TV service providers in Vietnam, K+ has opted to extend existing contracts until December 31, 2025. The platform will now only offer one-month subscription packages, with sales ending before November 30, 2025.

The French pay-TV giant Canal+ Group, which owns K+, has reportedly been considering a withdrawal from the Vietnamese market due to prolonged financial losses.

This follows a controversial move by K+, which issued an ultimatum to its partners, demanding significantly higher broadcasting fees - especially for its English Premier League (EPL) content. In response, telecoms and TV service providers refused to purchase EPL rights at what they described as “exorbitant” rates.

A pay-TV provider told VietNamNet that their annual revenue from distributing K+ packages only reached tens of billions of dong (a few hundred thousand USD). Yet, K+ was requesting license fees worth hundreds of billions of dong (millions of USD) per distributor - making the business model unfeasible.

One telecom provider stated bluntly that no Vietnamese pay-TV company could survive under the new price structure. Customers would not be able to afford a fee that’s dozens of times higher just to access the EPL matches exclusively held by K+.

Following widespread rejection of its ultimatum, K+ backtracked and sent formal notices to extend previously expired contracts (as of July 1, 2025) until the end of December 2025.

In the same notice, K+ also requested that partners discontinue any ongoing customer loyalty programs involving K+ content.

However, another unusual detail emerged: K+ announced that only one-month subscription packages would be available going forward, and only up to November 30, 2025. After that, only channel access will be maintained through December 31. Previously, packages were typically sold with durations of six months or a full year.

This has led to widespread speculation that major changes may be on the horizon for K+ beginning January 1, 2026.

A representative of a local pay-TV company told VietNamNet that they had recently hired several former K+ employees. Meanwhile, social media posts have begun circulating about staff departures from the platform. K+ has yet to release an official statement addressing this.

In some foreign news outlets, Canal+ was reported to be evaluating its exit from Vietnam, citing ongoing losses. K+, however, refuted the claims as “inaccurate” and affirmed that all operations, including sales, subscription renewals, and broadcasting, are continuing as usual.

“In the context of a fiercely competitive and rapidly evolving pay-TV market in Vietnam, we are constantly adapting and adjusting our services to better serve audiences,” a K+ representative said. “The new 2025/2026 EPL season will return with exciting sports and entertainment content across five K+ channels and all subscription bundles.”

In Vietnam, many viewers continue to access illegal streaming platforms like Xoilac and Thapcam to watch EPL matches. According to Aaron Herps, Head of Content Protection for the Premier League in Asia-Pacific, thousands of pirate websites broadcasting EPL content in Vietnam have been identified and are being blocked.

“Vietnam is one of the countries with the highest traffic to illegal streaming platforms in the region, but it also responds the fastest to violations,” Herps said.

He cited a study revealing that 55% of users stopped visiting illegal websites after access was blocked. “This shows a clear shift in user behavior. However, when such platforms are shut down, many users migrate to newly emerging, equally risky sites - resulting in increased data theft, malware attacks, and online financial scams,” he added.

Thai Khang