DStv hit by 180m Rand penalty
August 1, 2017
By Chris Forrester
South Africa’s Competition Commission has levied a Rand 180 million (€11.4m) penalty on pay-TV operator DStv. The case has been rumbling on for some years following a 2011 examination by the Commission into how DStv, via Multichoice, which handled its advertising sales, admitted colluding with certain media groups on how ads were sold, the discounts available and payment terms for ads which ran on DStv.
The Commission had found that the practices restricted fair competition and were in direct contravention of the country’s Competition Acts.
The penalty was announced earlier this year but its decision needed ratification by the Competition Tribunal, which has now confirmed the decision.
The Competition Tribunal said that the bulk of the penalty fund will go to help develop black-owned small media, and advertising agencies looking for start-up capital.