Direct Star was a French free-to-air music television channel owned by Vincent Bolloré, that launched on 1 September 2010, replacing Virgin 17.

On 10 June 2010, Bolloré Group, which already owned Direct 8, bought the Virgin 17 channel from Lagardère Active for a sum that would amount to approximately €70 million, excluding the takeover of staff (20 people) and part of the programs.

[6] That same day, at 8 pm, Direct Star officially replaced Virgin 17, with a giant alarm clock-shaped countdown as a launch program followed by a parody of an episode of the 30 Rock series.

[9] On 26 December 2010, Direct Star broadcast unpublished images of the last concerts[clarification needed] and an exclusive interview with Jean-Michel Jarre.

[16] In March 2012, Canal+ presented its proposals for film, sports, and advertising rights to the Autorité de la concurrence to obtain authorization for the buyout.

On that date, the two channels were under the full operational control of Canal+ Group, who decided to change the name of Direct Star to "D17" on Sunday, 7 October 2012, at 8:45 pm.