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Vivendi SE Canal+, a French premium television channel, has submitted an acquisition bid for the purchase of Africa’s leading entertainment company, MultiChoice. This is coming after the company recently purchased a 6.5% stake of the company, in addition to its 20.1% stake in 2020.
Its not the first time the French company is acquiring an African business. In 2019, Canal+ announced that they’ve acquired Mary Remmy Njoku’s ROK Studios from its VOD company IROKOtv for an undisclosed amount. At that time, the platform boasted of the largest online catalogue of Nollywood content in the world.
Five years later, the ROK film studio has created over 2,500 hours of content that have now been aired on cable networks across the globe. It has focused on creating low-budget films while spotlighting emerging talents. A feat which was believed to be possible due to the funding and resources the platform got as a result of its acquisition.
Why Multichoice?
In March 2023, South African entertainment company Multichoice reported that it added 1.7 million active subscribers within 90 days. In addition to this, the group had maintained its focus on local content, which reportedly accounted for 50% of its total general entertainment spend in 2023. During that period, they delivered local content production of over 6,500 hours, coupled with the launch of five more local channels.
With successful shows like Big Brother and Nigerian Idol, local adaptations of The Real Housewives franchise and more, the entertainment platform has increased its reach. Not to forget SuperSport with their live broadcasting of the English Premier League, La Liga, and the African Cup of Nations.
Who Is Canal+?
Canal+ is a French premium television channel owned 100% by the Groupe Canal+, which owns Vivendi. In a recent interview, Canal+ chairman and CEO Maxime Saada mentioned that to face global competitors, there needs to be strategic investment in technology and content.
“We are in a world where we are facing global competitors, most of them from America that have been smart at creating scale through the internet. To face these giants you need to be able to invest in content and technology, and to that you need scale,” he said.
On January 30, 2024, Bloomberg reported that the French billionaire Vincent Bolloré’s Vivendi SE was proposing a break up of its media and entertainment empire into four separately traded companies – Film and TV studio Canal+, communications firm Havas, an investment business and an entity holding the company’s majority stake in Lagardere, and Prisma Media.
The strategy had been a move by Bolloré to form a European empire capable of taking on Netflix Inc. and Walt Disney Co. Since taking control of Canal+, he had acquired rivals in Europe, Africa and Asia to rival these empires.
What Stake Does Canal+ Have In Multichoice?
According to reports, Canal+ is currently MultiChoice’s biggest shareholder with a 31.7% stake but needs 35% for a mandatory takeover. While the company has offered 105 rands per share (46 billion rands, equivalent to $2.5 billion) in cash for the rest of the business, South African law restricts a foreign company like Canal+ from having more than 20% of the voting rights on the board of directors of a South African broadcaster.
This move was Canal+’s strategy to combine its local operations with Multichoice, thereby creating a cumulative 50 million subscribers and access to more resources to invest in local content and sports.
What Does It Mean For The African Entertainment Industry?
Multichoice owns Showmax, Africa’s leading online subscription video-on-demand service with multiple culture-defining shows like the Big Brother franchise, reality TV show The Real Housewives, and the Idol franchise series Nigerian Idol. In addition to this, the group owns the Nigerian Oscars, Africa Magic Viewers Choice Awards and many more assets.
This means Africa will be losing its stake in its entertainment industry. With IROKOtv and ROK film studios losing their place in the industry and Multichoice gone, Africa will be losing its foremost Pay-TV entertainment companies, which could jeopardise the storytelling, approach and trajectory of the industry. If this happens, all of Nigeria’s leading entertainment platforms – DStv, GOtv, Showmax, IROKOtv – will be owned by foreigners, and most importantly, one platform, Canal+.
If an acquisition takes place, Netng predicts that Canal+ will implement its approach with ROK Studios, in which the studio remained an independent company as Mary Remmy Njoku retained her role as director-general.
Over the years, Vivendi has become known for its hostile takeovers. However, given the complexities of the proposed acquisition, Netng predicts that a complete takeover is unlikely.
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