WeeklySA_AdminOFFERING: French media group Canal+ is considering deploying its all-in-one streaming app — bundling Apple TV content and HBO Max — to subscribers of MultiChoice Group, following its R48 billion acquisition of the African pay-TV giant…
By Rivaldo Jantjies, Loni Prinsloo and Benoit Berthelot
Canal+ SA is considering deploying its streaming app, which includes deals with AppleTV and Warner Bros Discovery’s HBO Max, to clients of South African pay-TV operator MultiChoice Group, which the French firm bought last year.
“All of the content is embedded on the Canal+ app, and as a user you do not have to go on another app,” Chief Financial Officer Amandine Ferre said in an interview on Thursday.
Canal+ gained control of MultiChoice — part owner of streaming service Showmax with Comcast Corp — late last year in a deal that valued the African platform at about $3 billion. The Johannesburg-based firm’s operations are mainly in the south and east of the continent as well as Nigeria and Ghana, while the French company already has a presence throughout francophone western Africa.
It hasn’t taken a final decision on what to do with Showmax — MultiChoice’s streaming offering — or on the roll-out of the Canal+ app to countries where MultiChoice operates, Ferre said.
Canal+ shares surged as much as 15% in London Thursday and are at a record.
The combined entertainment platform will likely deliver more than €400 million in earnings before interest, tax and amortization, and about €300 million free-cash-flow cost savings by 2030, it said in a statement Thursday.
Canal+ is working to start growing MultiChoice’s subscriber numbers after the company lost almost 3 million customers over the past two financial years.
It has already renegotiated a contract for set-top boxes and has provided cheaper units since November, she said.
“We are really working on the entry ticket and the best packages, and making sure we have the best price,” said Ferre.
The combined entity has returned National Basketball Association content to the SuperSport offering after an eight-year break, and also added French Ligue 1 football matches to its platform.
MultiChoice was created by Cape Town-based Naspers. In 2019, the company was spun off Naspers and in 2024, Canal+ made a takeover approach. Its premium service is priced at about $60 a month. – Bloomberg/Fullview
BUSINESS Briefs
Green Economy Summit for Cape Town
Cape Town will host Africa’s Green Economy Summit (AGES) 2026, a four-day high-level deal-making platform aimed at accelerating Africa’s transition to a just, inclusive, and investment-led green economy.
Bringing together project owners, policymakers, and global financiers, AGES 2026 is designed to connect African green and blue economy opportunities with international capital ready to fund scalable, high-impact solutions.
The summit, which will be held at the Cape Town International Convention Centre from February 24 to 27, will showcase more than 40 investment-ready projects spanning the full green economy value chain — from early-stage innovations to large-scale national infrastructure.
Key sectors in focus include renewable energy, green transport, water security, waste management, sustainable agriculture, green buildings, the blue economy, and climate and clean technologies.
The programme places strong emphasis on practical deal flow, featuring two dedicated pitch stages, investor roundtables, closed-door deal rooms, and curated matchmaking sessions with development finance institutions, venture capital funds, banks, and asset managers.
Nature and biodiversity finance will also take centre stage, with discussions exploring emerging markets for biodiversity credits and nature-based solutions as new frontiers for sustainable investment on the continent.
Beyond conference halls, delegates will experience Cape Town’s green transition first-hand through site visits to pioneering projects, complemented by exclusive networking sessions in the surrounding winelands.
The 2026 edition is held under the theme “From Ambition to Action: Scaling Investment in Africa’s Green and Blue Solutions,” underscoring a shift from commitments and pledges toward tangible projects, funded solutions, and measurable impact.
African Mining Indaba Returns to SA
Cape Town will once again become the epicentre of Africa’s mining economy when Investing in African Mining Indaba convenes at the Cape Town International Convention Centre (CTICC) from February 9 to 12, for four days of deal-making, policy engagement, and strategic collaboration.
Now in its fourth decade since its launch in 1994, African Mining Indaba has evolved into the continent’s most influential mining investment platform, drawing governments, global investors, mining companies, financiers, service providers, and community stakeholders into one powerful forum.
For one decisive week each year, the conference sets the tone for investment flows and policy direction across Africa’s vast and diverse mining sector.
The 2026 edition takes place under the theme “Stronger together: Progress through partnerships,” reflecting a growing consensus that Africa’s mining future depends on collaboration across the value chain.
Organisers say the focus is on breaking down silos between governments, industry, communities, and innovators to unlock shared value, sustainable growth, and long-term resilience.
Discussions during the week will centre on investment opportunities across critical minerals, energy transition metals, and traditional commodities, alongside pressing issues such as sustainable mining practices, technological innovation, local beneficiation, and responsible resource governance.
The conference remains a premier marketplace for forging partnerships, advancing projects, and aligning capital with Africa’s development priorities.
As the event continues to expand in scale and global influence, African Mining Indaba remains a cornerstone of the continent’s mining calendar — not only as a networking hub, but as a strategic platform shaping how Africa’s mineral wealth is developed to support inclusive economic growth.
With mining playing a central role in Africa’s industrialisation and energy transition ambitions, the 2026 gathering is expected to reinforce the message that the industry’s greatest progress will be achieved not in isolation, but through partnership.
Franchising To Help Rebuild SA Economy
The Franchise Association of SA (FASA) will host its 2026 Annual Conference at the Birchwood Hotel on February 19, spotlighting franchising as a practical tool to help rebuild South Africa’s fragile economy.The gathering marks FASA’s first major in-person conference since the COVID-19 pandemic and the first under newly appointed CEO Freddy Makgato, who says the timing is critical as unemployment, weak growth and limited entrepreneurial opportunities continue to constrain the economy.
“South Africa faces persistently high unemployment and sluggish growth,” Makgato said. “The franchise business model is one of the most underutilised yet powerful mechanisms for job creation, entrepreneurship development and inclusive growth.”
Franchising currently contributes about 15% to national GDP, supporting hundreds of thousands of jobs across sectors including food, retail, healthcare, education and professional services. FASA believes lifting this contribution to 18% or 20% could significantly expand SME activity, skills development and investor confidence.
The conference will convene industry leaders, policymakers, investors and entrepreneurs to focus on scalable franchise models, youth employment, skills development, digital transformation, market expansion and franchise financing.
With youth unemployment exceeding 50% and economic headwinds persisting, FASA aims to position franchising not just as a business model, but as a strategic instrument for national recovery and long-term prosperity.
