One and a half years after its launch, Game One, the games channel owned jointly by Canal Plus and electronic games publisher Infogrames, is changing tack and has secured considerable additional carriage. Rival satellite operator TPS is to carry it from April, in the basic package, to 850,000 subscribers. Lyonnaise Cable is to include it shortly on its digital network, adding potentially 200,000 customers; and from the beginning of the second quarter it will be available to the 70,000 digital customers of France Telecom Cable. Another deal with NTL is nearing completion for when it begins its digital operation in June. These deals comprise a doubling of its audience, to 2.3 million by mid 2000 and almost three million by the end of the year. Programme content is to be more varied, with more TV series and coverage of PC games as well as consoles.

Game One managing director Nathalie Coste-Cerdan revealed that the channel is set to encrypt from February 21. Until now it has been transmitted FTA via Astra so it was available to all Canalsatellite subscribers as well as viewers from other countries. Coste-Cerdan told Interspace that the decision to encrypt was prompted by the cable companies rather than by TPS; it is also needed so that they can get the rights to broadcast more TV series.