Observer Money sat down with MultiChoice Namibia Managing Director Roger Gertze to discuss the Canal+ deal, its impact on Namibia, the production of local content, subscription fees, and decoder prices.
Chamwe Kaira (CK): What impact will the takeover of Multichoice by Canal+ have on the operations of Multichoice Namibia?
Roger Gertze (RG): You would know that Canal+ is a media company similar to what we have been doing over the years. They have been concentrating on the French-speaking part of the continent as well as in their home country, France. They have been expanding over the years into a number of countries on the African continent. With this acquisition, they have basically now consolidated their position on the African continent. Which now includes clusters of English-speaking territories, French territories as well as Portuguese territories. The group has now been able to consolidate pay TV across the continent.
Now what we are looking for is to localise in all of the territories in which we operate as a group in terms of consolidating and using the scales that we have to consolidate in a number of areas in the business; it’s obviously early days.
We need to understand each other (Multichoice and Canal+). Even the Southern African region has many nuances to be taken into account. Multichoice has been operating for 35 years. The French have taken note of these things. We are working in unison to get the best synergies on both sides with the aim of expanding the footprint.
CK: Will MultiChoice continue the production of local firms with the Canal+ acquisition?
RG: Obviously. That is the journey that we started here in Namibia with the Multichoice Talent Factory almost five years ago. We have so far produced 12 alumni from the Multichoice Talent Factory in Zambia. This will help us produce quality local stories. We will then use our various channels to broadcast this content. There are also a lot of Africans in the diaspora who love to watch this content. There is a demand for that. Once we start to showcase Ombura 1 elsewhere, be it in Canada or the US or in Europe, there will always be Namibians there who will want to watch and for whom the content will resonate. Canal+ sees local content as a game changer. With us it’s a unique package. We have a combination of international content, including sports, which resonates with people, whereas our online competitors, some, only show movies. We have a full package. In the end the synergies will be massive.
CK: In terms of revenue, how much does Namibia contribute to the group revenue of MultiChoice?
RG: While it’s difficult to say. But we have always been on record to say that we have been in existence for close to 35 years and that we are a business that is found. What we have been saying is that you are making a buying decision at the end of every month. So every month we need to be sharp about the content that we showcase for our customers to be able to come back, and that for us is what has made us win over the years.
CK: There were media reports that the shareholders of Multichoice Namibia made millions following the Canal+ acquisition. Is that true?
RG: I cannot confirm the number, but what I know is that at the JSE, obviously, there had to be a consolidation because the entity is now Canal+. Therefore, if you are invested at the stock exchange and if these kinds of transactions happen, you are bound to benefit.
CK: How has Multichoice Namibia been performing?
RG: I can say since Covid, it’s been tough. We have been doing a number of interventions to still keep our base and to remain profitable. With the acquisition by Canal+, we are looking to make our services more accessible and more affordable for our local customers. We have introduced lower price points for DSTV Lite service, which has been reduced from N$100 per month to N$60 per month. On the GoTV service, we have reduced the price for GoTV Lite from N$60 to N$30 per month and GoTV Value from N$100 per month to N$60 per month. Both those packages have 20 TV channels and quite a number of radio channels. So it is quite a good offer. We have reduced our GOTV decoder price from N$549 to N$149 from the 1 November. The DSTV decoder was reduced from N$699 to N$199. So you can already see that the coming together (with Canal+) has benefits, and we intend to pass on the benefits to the customers.
CK: With the coming of Canal+, we are going to see new movies on your channels?Â
RG: They have rights to certain international content, to certain sports, which our sister company Supersport did not have rights to. On the movie side, they may have some access to some international content, which we did not have. Coming together, we will share with them the rights that we have, and they will share the rights that they have with us. They will be a richer content line-up; it’s a massive operation that will need time. But the commitment is that when there are low-hanging fruits, they must be passed on to customers. All of these things, we are rolling out, and the future looks brilliant for us.
