South Africa’s Vodacom Group has signed what it described as a “pivotal” agreement with SpaceX’s Starlink. Starlink is not yet approved to launch its direct-to-device activity in the country. “Integrating Starlink’s satellite backhaul into Vodacom’s mobile network will accelerate network coverage expansion while increasing network performance in rural areas,” Vodacom said in a statement. Vodacom […]

Local reports in South Africa say that Communications Minister Solly Malatsi is poised to give a policy direction which will permit SpaceX’s Starlink broadband-by-satellite system to operate in the country. Malatsi’s move will have to be approved by the nation’s regulator Icasa and will likely to require Starlink to invest in local businesses in order […]

Canal+ is moving ahead with its plans for a secondary inward listing on South Africa’s bourse as the French group takes full control of MultiChoice Group Ltd. As part of the process, Canal+ will first delist MultiChoice from the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE), said the company in a statement on October 13. It will then […]

Elon Musk’s Starlink service is offering some major concessions to South Africa in an attempt to get permission to launch services in the country. Starlink has itemised significant investment promises for the government. Ryan Goodnight, senior director in charge of market access at Starlink has reportedly raised a few key points at the AGM of […]

South Africa’s public broadcaster SABC reported greater losses for 2025, and is complaining about government’s delay in creating a new funding model. According to SABC’s annual report, losses for the year rose by 28 per cent to R253-million (€12.6m), compared with the R198-million loss it reported in 2024. “It has been clear for some time […]

Canal+ and MultiChoice have announced that all conditions to Canal+’s 35 billion rand (€1.72bn) takeover offer for the South African TV broadcaster have been fulfilled following the completion of all necessary regulatory conditions, thus making the deal unconditional. Canal+ owned 46 per cent of MultiChoice as of September 19th, with another 2.2 per cent of […]

Lynk Global, a satellite-to-cellular operator which has SES as a major shareholder, has asked the FCC for a 60-day temporary authority to operate feeder links in the S-Band as part of a South African trial of its technology, with an unnamed local mobile operator (probably MTN), aimed at testing direct-to-device (D2D) voice calling. The test […]

South Africa Broadcasting has been under financial pressures and severe monetary constraints for some years. Local reports say that pressure is mounting on communications minister Solly Malatsi to act to rescue the SABC as it struggles to pay its escalating bills. September 8th saw reports that State-owned signal distributor Sentech, whose primary client is SABC, […]

South Africa’s department of communications & digital technologies has stepped in with an effort to solve the long-running dispute between public broadcaster SAB and transmission company Sentech. The move has seen the government publish a tender document in an attempt to solve the dilemma between two state-backed entities. “There has been an ongoing tariffs dispute […]