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South African billionaire, Patrice Motsepe, is in talks with Vivendi SE’s Canal+ to team up for a multibillion-dollar bid for broadcaster MultiChoice Group, as per sources familiar with the situation.
Multichoice refused to entertain Canal + initial bid. Adding South Africa’s wealthiest Black individual to the mix could also potentially assist the French media conglomerate in fulfilling the country’s rigorous Black ownership criteria, Bloomberg reported.
Spokespersons for both Canal+ and Motsepe’s investment firm, African Rainbow Capital, declined to provide comments. However, insiders stressed that discussions are in preliminary stages, and there’s no assurance that a deal will be finalised. Canal+ has amassed a stake exceeding 35 percent in MultiChoice, the largest pay-TV company in South Africa, thereby prompting a mandatory takeover bid.
Should the French broadcaster successfully navigate South Africa’s restrictions on foreign media ownership, it stands to unlock broader access to African markets, home to the world’s fastest-growing and youngest population.
Canal+ is expected to make a formal offer for MultiChoice at 125 rand a share, valuing the company at about 55 billion rand (US$2,9 billion), before April 8 for consideration by the board’s independent members, sources said.
Africa’s streaming dominance
Formed in South Africa in 1985, MultiChoice expanded across Africa in the early 1990s with packages including live English football matches and local shows. The company was spun off from Naspers Ltd. in 2019. It also owns Showmax, the popular video-streaming service and Netflix Inc. rival.
Multichoice, which services 50 countries in Africa has been relentless in warding off competition from multinationals such as Netflix and Amazon. This is evident in MultiChoice’s campaign of investing in local content.
The CEO and Chairman of Canal+ noted that this acquisition would give Multichoice the resources to double down on local content investment. Vivendi aims to combine its local Canal+ operations with MultiChoice, creating a group with almost 50 million subscribers and resources to invest more in local content and sports. — Business Insider Africa
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