In the specific case of France, there are at least two reasons:<p>- there is a stringent legal regime (&quot;media chronology&quot;) that sets compulsory delays for publishing a movie on alternative mediums after it has got into theatres : publishers have to wait 4 months to get DVDs out, free TV channels won&#x27;t be able to screen the movie before 30 months, and VOD subscription services have to wait 36 months (!)<p>- Moreover, exclusivity on the national territory is a common practice for TV series, and a lot of the popular ones have been sold to major TV channels. Ironically, Netflix had already signed such a contract with Canal+, a French channel, for its signature series House of Cards, which is thus not available on the French version of Netflix !