French broadcaster Canal+ has taken control of MultiChoice Group Ltd., South Africa’s largest pay-TV provider, after its mandatory offer for remaining shares became unconditional on Sept. 19. The approval follows months of regulatory reviews and marks Canal+’s biggest acquisition to date.
The company now directly owns 46% of MultiChoice, plus another 2.2% acquired through tendered shares, cementing effective control. The enlarged group will serve over 40 million subscribers across nearly 70 countries in Africa, Europe and Asia, with a workforce of about 17,000 people.
Together, the companies will operate platforms including DStv, GOtv, Showmax, and myCanal, blending Canal+’s historic strength in Francophone Africa with MultiChoice’s dominance in Anglophone markets.
South Africa’s Competition Tribunal, ICASA, the JSE, and Takeover Regulation Panel approved the transaction, subject to commitments. Canal+ pledged to back locally owned businesses and small enterprises, increase investment in African content and sports programming, and support historically disadvantaged groups in the sector.
“The combination strengthens our ability to back creative talent and sports programming across Africa, Europe, and Asia,” said Maxime Saada, Canal+ CEO, who will also chair the MultiChoice board. David Mignot has been appointed CEO of Canal+’s African operations, while former MultiChoice chief Calvo Mawela will serve as chairman of the African business. Nicolas Dandoy takes over as CFO.
Governance adjustments include aligning MultiChoice’s year-end to Dec. 31 to match Canal+ reporting and removing foreign shareholder voting restrictions under South African law.
The deal also reshapes the competitive landscape. MultiChoice has been under pressure from global streaming rivals such as Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, and Disney+, which have been expanding aggressively in Africa. The acquisition gives Canal+ greater scale to defend market share, expand Showmax as a regional streaming challenger, and leverage sports rights and original programming to retain subscribers. Analysts say the combination positions the French group as a more formidable rival to international platforms seeking African growth.
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