Advanced Television

dstv

Canal+ ups stake in MultiChoice again

France’s Canal+ Group has again upped its stake in South Africa’s MultiChoice pay-TV operation. Canal+ now owns 31.7 per cent of MultiChoice which is itself listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange. MultiChoice operates the DStv, SuperSport and Showmax pay-TV options for African viewers. Canal+ is itself controlled by Vivendi. The new stake is up from […]

July 3, 2023By Chris Forrester

DStv counterfeit remotes destroyed

South Africa’s pay-TV operator MultiChoice Group, working with local police and customs, says it has destroyed 5,000 counterfeit DStv remote controls and promised it would maintain a “firm stand” against illegally imported fake goods. In a statement on February 28th, MultiChoice said it takes all attempts at piracy “very seriously” and will continue “protecting its […]

March 1, 2023By Chris Forrester

South Africa: DStv ups pay-TV prices

MultiChoice, as expected, has announced its pay-TV prices for 2023, effective April 1st, for DStv subscribers in South Africa. Prices are rising, but not as much in previous years. However, inevitably with some changes in the DStv packages it is not easy comparing bundles. For example, DStv Premium subscribers’ monthly bouquet price has an increase […]

February 16, 2023By Chris Forrester

SABC wants more cash from DStv

South Africa’s public broadcaster, already suffering from a lack of licence fee income and a downturn in advertising, is facing a controversial arbitration over its ‘must carry’ obligations towards pay-TV operator MultiChoice. South Africa broadcasting regulator ICASA has admitted that its negotiations with DStv and SABC have reached an impasse. SABC COO Ian Plaatjes has […]

December 8, 2022By Chris Forrester

South Africa: DStv loses Premium subs

South African pay-TV giant DStv has lost 3 per cent of its ‘Premium’ subscriber base in South Africa according to the latest half-year financial results from parent MultiChoice. Multichoice said that the impact of the football off-season was exacerbated by an extremely challenging consumer climate. Generating additional revenue streams continues to be a main focus […]

November 11, 2022By Chris Forrester

DStv warns African FTA broadcasters over World Cup

In years past there have been African and Middle East broadcasters who have happily stolen pay-TV’s exclusive coverage of key sporting events. DStv has now issued a clear warning to broadcasters in Africa saying, in essence, ‘hands off our signals’. The most blatant thefts of football signals occurred during the Saudi Arabian beoutQ transmissions of […]

November 8, 2022By Chris Forrester

DStv launching 4K channels for World Cup

MultiChoice’s DStv says it will add a pair of 4K channels in readiness for the upcoming FIFA World Cup in Qatar. The tournament kicks off on November 20th. Nyiko Shiburi, CEO of MultiChoice South Africa, speaking at the company’s annual media event in Johannesburg, said that a significant amount of technical work had been done […]

September 26, 2022By Chris Forrester

Nigeria dismisses DStv price complaints

A Competition & Consumer Protection tribunal, sitting in Nigeria, has thrown out class action lawsuit challenging recent price increases by DStv. MultiChoice owns both DStv and Gotv, which are pay-TV operations in Nigeria. Delivering judgment on September 6th, a three-member panel of the tribunal, dismissed the suit for lacking in merit. Lawyer, Festus Onifade, had […]

September 8, 2022By Chris Forrester

Universal+ joining DStv

South African pay-TV operator DStv is to add NBCUniversal’s streaming service, Universal+, to its portfolio from October 14th. The service will be free for DStv subscribers and available throughout sub-Saharan Africa. DStv subscribers will be able to stream thousands of hours of entertainment, including the Safta award-winning Celebrity Game Night, by visiting ‘Catch Up’ on […]

September 2, 2022By Chris Forrester

Nigeria hits DStv over BBC documentary

Nigeria’s National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) has threatened a Naira 5 million fine (€11,824) against DStv (and other broadcasters including StarTimes, TSTV and Trust TV) for screening a ‘banditry’ documentary made by BBC Africa. Nigeria’s Banditry: The Inside Story was aired in Nigeria in March 2022. The programme (also named as The Bandit Warlords of Zamfara) […]

August 5, 2022By Chris Forrester