Groupe Canal+, the French pay-television operator owned by Vivendi, has bought an additional stake in MultiChoice, the DStv parent company. This latest investment increases its shareholding in MultiChoice to 15.4 percent from the previously held 12 percent, as disclosed in a regulatory JSE filing.
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“As a publicly held company, MultiChoice regularly engages with its strategic partners and maintains an open dialogue with the investment community. The group’s policy is not to comment on its individual shareholders, nor on its interactions with them. The Company remains committed to acting in the best interests of all shareholders and to create sustainable long-term shareholder value,” MultiChoice said in the filing.
It has almost been a year since Canal+ started buying shares in the South African satellite operator. The first disclosure came in October 2020 that Canal+ is buying 6.5 percent equity in the business, then less than a month later it ballooned to the previous 12 percent.
“Whether it’s Canal+ or someone else, we have a responsibility as directors of the company to do what is in the best interests of shareholders,” MultiChoice Group chief financial officer Tim Jacobs said.
“Whatever opportunity comes our way, we will try to keep an open mind. We will certainly look at it and say, ‘is this is in the best interest of shareholders or not?’ If it is, we’d need to embrace it and make the best deal we can for shareholders.”
He also said that the companies have been working together for some time, even before the initial equity acquisition, sharing content between the markets. “We have an ongoing relationship with them in various territories.”
Canal+ is looking to increase its investments in the African content pay-television industry. It is seen as untapped territory by many, including the French firm.
