South Africa’s Competition Tribunal has approved Canal+’s takeover offer of African pay-TV provider MultiChoice. But there are conditions.

The takeover, valued at 35 billion Rand (€1.7bn) can go ahead provided the Tribunal’s conditions are met. The conditions require Canal+ to guarantee public commitment proposals already agreed by both parties. The package also supports the participation of firms controlled by Historically Disadvantaged Persons and Small, Micro and Medium Enterprises in the audio-visual industry in South Africa. There must be job protection for a minimum of three years for existing staff at MultiChoice.

The Tribunal determined that a combination of the two giant broadcasters was unlikely to substantially lessen or prevent competition. Canal+ is targeting growing its African audience to as many as 100 million subscribers in future trading.

The deal required Canal+ to obtain clearances from multiple authorities, including the Competition Tribunal, the Johannesburg Stock Exchange, the Takeover Regulation Panel, the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (ICASA) regulator, and the Financial Surveillance Department. The deal is expected to close by October 8th.

The French media giant will acquire all outstanding ordinary shares of MultiChoice, Africa’s largest pay-TV broadcaster, at 125 Rand per share in an all-cash transaction.

Canal+, which was spun off from parent company Vivendi, made a firm offer in 2024 of 125 Rand in cash for MultiChoice shares that it did not already own, valuing MultiChoice at about 55 billion Rand. By adding MultiChoice’s 14.5 million subscribers to its own 8 million, Canal+ solidifies its position as Africa’s leading pay-TV provider.

“The combined group will benefit from enhanced scale, greater exposure to high-growth markets and the ability to deliver meaningful synergies,” said Maxime Saada, CEO of Canal+.

Calvo Mawela, CEO of MultiChoice, described the development as a “significant milestone”, expressing optimism about the future combined entity. Mawela emphasised the forward-looking nature of the partnership, stating, “We look forward to executing the remaining processes required to complete the transaction and to start building something extraordinary: a global media and entertainment company with Africa at its heart.”

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Categories: Articles, Broadcast, Business, M&A, Pay TV, Policy, Regulation

Tags: Canal+, multichoice