The French television channel Canal+ saw an opportunity to strengthen its moderate presence in the sub-Saharan market and it has now done so with a solid push amounting to an offer of 125 rand per share to own Multichoice for itself.

Canal+’s attempt at a takeover happened on Monday, 8 April, the day it made an all-cash mandatory offer to own every other stake in the South African media company that was not currently under its control. This then puts the figure it is willing to part with to seal the bid to a sum of 35 billion rand, which also translates to $1.9 billion in cash.

Before the French company could make the offer, it had to first exceed the 35 percent threshold set by South African regulators. Having now reached a 36.6 percent stake, it meant that Canal+, being Multichoice’s biggest shareholder, was firmly placed to take control, although making an offer is only a step in the journey to ownership.

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The initial 105 rand per share bid made by Canal+ on 1 February was turned down, hence the latest effort, which pictures Multichoice’s latest valuation based on projections to a region of about 55 billion rand.

A joint statement released by the companies confirms this as a much better presentation compared to that made two months ago. Maxime Saada, the chairman and CEO of Canal+ Group also made positive comments about the partnership when he was on a CNBC Africa programme today.

Following constructive engagement with MultiChoice, says Mr Saada, we are pleased to have issued a joint firm intention announcement to make an offer today, representing a significant premium for the shareholders of MultiChoice.

Through combining our companies, we will be well-positioned to invest even more in local productions and sports content. The complementary geographies, considerable scale, and strengthened capabilities achieved by the combination of these two companies will ensure that Africa can tell her own stories on her own terms both locally and globally.

We are excited about these opportunities, which will be supported by further investment in technology, including the continued offering of a leading satellite service, and rolling out more innovative streaming products.

Power Lunch Southern Africa #DSTV410 #PLSA https://t.co/SEoUJsVFjh

— CNBC Africa (@cnbcafrica) April 8, 2024

Although the prospect of Canal+’s majority stake in Multichoice may further widen the reach of African content in Europe, subscribers are concerned about the cost to them.

In Nigeria where there are a majority of Multichoice-owned DStv subscribers, the subscription fees are already putting people off. The country, apart from South Africa, represents a large demographic of its English-speaking viewers and finding an affordable and time-worthy subscription plan for this base could revive the attraction to Multichoice content.

Ayodele Johnson

Ayodelé is a Lagos-based journalist and the Content and Editorial Coordinator at Meiza. All around the megacity, I am steering diverse lifestyle magazine audiences with ingenious hacks and insights that spur fast, informed decisions in their busy lives.