Canal+ completes takeover of MultiChoice Group in $2.9 billion deal

Canal+ Group has completed its takeover of MultiChoice Group, the South African parent company of DStv, following the completion of its mandatory tender offer for all outstanding shares.

The two groups announced that Canal+’s mandatory tender offer to acquire all of MultiChoice’s outstanding common shares is now unconditional, with Canal+ therefore now exercising effective control over MultiChoice.

The acquisition marks Canal+’s largest transaction ever, valued at approximately $2.9 billion, and represents a significant milestone in the consolidation of Africa’s broadcasting landscape.

Canal+ was ordered by South Africa’s Takeover Regulation Panel (TRP) to make an immediate offer to holders of MultiChoice shares after its shareholding reached the mandatory threshold requiring a takeover bid.

Under South African law, the company must make a mandatory takeover offer when its shareholding reaches 35%, which triggered the regulatory requirement for the French company to bid for the remaining shares.

The bid for Multichoice was revised, increasing it by nearly 20% with an all-cash offer of 125 rand per share, valuing the company at 55 billion rand ($2.9 billion).

Canal+ Group started building a position in MultiChoice in 2020 and has since become its single biggest shareholder. Canal Plus tabled that mandatory offer back in April 2024, with the protracted approval process indicative of the scale of the takeover.

The approval cleared one of the last hurdles, paving the way for Canal+ to launch its mandatory offer to minority shareholders.

Among the concessions that Canal Plus had to make for its bid to be approved is the commitment to funding sports and entertainment content in South Africa, addressing regulatory concerns about foreign ownership of a major African broadcaster.

The successful completion of this deal positions Canal+ as a dominant force in African pay-TV, combining its existing operations with MultiChoice’s extensive subscriber base across the continent, including the popular DStv satellite television service.

This takeover represents one of the largest foreign acquisitions of a South African media company and signals continued international interest in Africa’s growing entertainment and broadcasting sectors.