In a move that redraws the map of African pay-TV, French media giant Canal+ has completed its takeover of South Africa’s MultiChoice Group, the owner of DStv, GOtv and Showmax, bringing one of the continent’s most influential broadcasters under new management. The deal, declared unconditional in late September 2025 after months of regulatory scrutiny, creates a combined media group with tens of millions of subscribers and a presence across dozens of African markets.
For Nigeria, MultiChoice’s largest single market by subscribers and one of its most contested, the deal raises both hope and fear. On one hand, Canal+ has deep pockets, continental ambitions and a record of investing in local content. On the other, MultiChoice’s recent run of business stumbles in Nigeria has left customers, regulators and politicians increasingly impatient.
MultiChoice’s Nigerian story over the last three years has been rocky. Rising inflation, currency volatility and squeezed household budgets led to significant subscriber losses. The group reported sharp declines in paying households across the “rest of Africa” region, with Nigeria singled out as a trouble spot that depressed revenues and profits. The company’s half-year results published in 2024 showed a near collapse in interim profit as subscriptions slipped.
Those business pressures have fed straight into confrontations on the ground. In early 2025 MultiChoice announced price increases for DStv and GOtv packages that provoked a wave of public anger, calls for boycotts and formal intervention from regulators. Nigeria’s Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) ordered MultiChoice to hold prices pending investigation. When the company implemented new tariffs anyway, the commission filed charges, a rare and public enforcement clash that culminated in court action. The House of Representatives also weighed in, and consumer groups accused MultiChoice of discriminatory pricing compared with South Africa and other markets.
The firm has also had to settle large disputes with authorities. In early 2024 MultiChoice agreed to a tax settlement with Nigerian authorities worth roughly 37.3 million dollars after a multi-year confrontation with the Federal Inland Revenue Service. That payment and the regulatory battles have left the brand more politically exposed than it was a few years ago.
Canal+’s takeover brings a new strategic sponsor that could re-energise investment in technology, content and distribution across Africa. A few likely areas of impact include content and investment, scale and efficiency, pricing strategy and regulatory spotlight, and jobs and restructuring.
Canal+ has a track record of funding local programming and regional sports rights. Nigerian producers and creators could benefit from deeper commissioning budgets, and Showmax, MultiChoice’s streaming arm, may get stronger integration with Canal+’s global catalogue, potentially improving the streaming experience for Nigerian users.
Combining operations could lower some costs through shared procurement, centralized licensing and technology consolidation. That might free resources to improve service reliability and product innovation.
The risk is that a global owner will prioritize harmonized pricing or margin restoration over local affordability. This was exactly the behavior that attracted regulator ire in Nigeria and Ghana earlier this year. Across the region, governments have shown willingness to intervene. Ghana, for example, threatened to suspend DStv’s licence unless prices were cut, signaling that regulators will not hesitate to act if public pressure mounts. Canal+ will inherit not only MultiChoice’s customers but also its regulator relationships and political headaches.
Early indications are that MultiChoice has already begun restructuring in anticipation of integration. Consolidation often leads to duplication-driven job reductions in corporate and technical functions, though it can also create new roles if investment leads to expansion of production, distribution and digital services. Reports of board changes and management reshuffles underline the reality of a governance reset under Canal+.
For Nigerian subscribers, the immediate questions are straightforward. Will service improve, and will prices fall? The answer is mixed. Canal+ could bring better streaming technology, more international and local content, and improved sports deals, but in the short term consumers risk further price adjustments as new ownership seeks returns on a major acquisition. Given the recent legal battles and public sentiment, any attempt at aggressive price increases would likely trigger political and regulatory backlash, a costly misstep for a company trying to stabilise its African business.
For the wider media ecosystem, the consolidation intensifies competition with global streamers such as Netflix, Amazon and Disney, as well as local digital challengers. It also increases Canal+’s leverage when negotiating rights and advertising deals, which could reshape which sports and shows are available on free-to-air and pay channels.
Canal+’s acquisition of MultiChoice is a watershed for African broadcast and streaming. For Nigeria the outcome will depend on how Canal+ balances global commercial objectives with intense local scrutiny. If the new owner invests in better Nigerian content, fixes service issues and adopts a sensitive pricing approach, it could stabilise DStv and Showmax and rebuild trust. If instead it pushes for cost recovery through hard price harmonization or deep cuts in local operations, it will inherit the very consumer revolt and regulatory heat that have dogged MultiChoice in recent years. The coming months, and how regulators, consumer groups and Canal+ respond, will determine whether this consolidation becomes a win for Nigerian viewers or another chapter in a fraught relationship between pay-TV and the continent it serves.
Sam Aina