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Canal+ buyout of S.Africa’s MultiChoice one step closer

MultiChoice is Africa's largest pay TV enterprise and includes SuperSport and DStv
MultiChoice is Africa's largest pay TV enterprise and includes SuperSport and DStv - Copyright AFP Frederic J. BROWN
MultiChoice is Africa's largest pay TV enterprise and includes SuperSport and DStv - Copyright AFP Frederic J. BROWN

South Africa’s competition authority announced Wednesday it had approved the buyout of Africa’s largest pay TV enterprise MultiChoice by France’s Canal+, which wants to expand its footprint on the continent.

The merger, which has been in the works for nearly a year, needs the final go-ahead from the commission’s Competition Tribunal, it said in a statement. 

Canal+ holds around 45 percent of MultiChoice’s shares and offered last year to acquire the remainder for 125 rand (6.16 euro) per share.

Canal+ is present in 25 African countries through 16 subsidiaries and has eight million subscribers, according to the French group.

MultiChoice operates in 50 countries across sub-Saharan Africa and has 19.3 million subscribers, it says. It includes Africa’s premier sports broadcaster, SuperSport, and the DStv satellite television service.

“This is a major step forward in our ambition to create a global media and entertainment company with Africa at its heart,” Canal+ CEO Maxime Saada said in a statement.

The commission said its approval of the merger was subject to public-interest conditions worth about 26 billion rand over three years, including increasing the shareholding of people disadvantaged under South Africa’s white-minority apartheid regime. 

It will also maintain the MultiChoice headquarters in South Africa.

A date for the Tribunal’s decision on the merger has not been announced but Canal+ said it was aiming for the deal to be completed by early October.

AFP
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With 2,400 staff representing 100 different nationalities, AFP covers the world as a leading global news agency. AFP provides fast, comprehensive and verified coverage of the issues affecting our daily lives.

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