Media giant Canal+’s strategy of cutting decoder prices and investing in premium sports rights is beginning to revive MultiChoice, with South Africa recording its strongest month for new subscriber additions in a decade following the French broadcaster’s acquisition of Africa’s largest pay-TV operator.
The company said subscriber acquisitions across MultiChoice markets rose 40 percent in the first half from a year earlier, driven by lower equipment prices, a broader distribution network and long-term broadcasting rights to South Africa’s Premier Soccer League (PSL), as well as the 2027 Men’s and 2029 Women’s Rugby World Cups across sub-Saharan Africa.
The results offer one of the clearest signs yet that Canal+’s turnaround strategy for MultiChoice is gaining traction after completing its years-long takeover of the broadcaster.
‘In Africa we have grown our combined subscriber base by seven percent,’ Maxime Saada, CEO of Canal+ said. ‘As part of the MultiChoice turnaround plan, we reduced entry costs for new subscribers and expanded our sales network. In South Africa we delivered a standout month in June, with the highest new subscriber uptake in a decade, and we secured long-term rights to the country’s most watched sports competition, the Premier Soccer League.’
The turnaround helped lift Canal+’s first-half performance, with group revenue rising 40 percent to pound 4.29 billion, largely reflecting the consolidation of MultiChoice’s earnings following the acquisition. Excluding MultiChoice, revenue grew 1.4 percent on a like-for-like basis.
Adjusted Earnings Before Interest and Tax (EBIT), before exceptional items, increased 68 percent to pound 433 million, while MultiChoice’s adjusted EBIT surged 160 percent to pound 143 million.
Canal+ further revealed that Africa and Asia’s adjusted EBIT rose by nine percent, excluding MultiChoice, supported by growth in Pay-TV and Fibre-To-The-Home (FTTH) services.
The company attributed the subscriber gains to making its services more affordable by reducing decoder prices, expanding its retail footprint by more than 15 percentsince March, and strengthening its sports offering to compete more effectively in an increasingly crowded entertainment market.
The broadcaster has secured long-term rights to the PSL in South Africa alongside the Men’s 2027 and Women’s 2029 Rugby World Cups across sub-Saharan Africa, reinforcing sport as a key pillar of its customer acquisition strategy.
‘Our strong first-half results reflect our strategic progress,’ Saada said. ‘Revenue increased by 40 percent and adjusted EBIT by 68 percent, reflecting our increased scale after the acquisition of MultiChoice.’
He added that Canal+ has already achieved half of its pound 250 million synergy target from the acquisition and remains on track to meet its full-year guidance.
The market welcomed the results. Canal+ shares rose by 7.9 percent to R55.96 on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange, their biggest one-day gain since the company listed earlier in June.
The subscriber rebound highlights Canal+’s turnaround strategy-built around lower prices, wider distribution and exclusive sports content-is beginning to reverse years of slowing growth at MultiChoice.
For investors, the results offer early evidence that the French broadcaster’s multibillion-dollar acquisition is delivering operational improvements, even as competition from Netflix, YouTube and other streaming platforms intensifies across Africa.