French media giant Canal+ is reportedly exploring the purchase of Comcast’s 30% stake in African streaming platform Showmax—a move that would cement its dominance in Africa’s media market. The talks, according to Bloomberg, are still preliminary, but Canal+, which already controls MultiChoice (Showmax’s parent company), is clearly moving to consolidate its streaming empire across the continent.
Catch up: Comcast entered the picture in 2023 through its NBCUniversal arm, taking a minority stake in Showmax and relaunching it on Peacock. The platform, now available in 44 African countries, has thrived on local storytelling—nine of its ten most-watched titles last year were African originals.
State of play: The incentive for Canal+ to acquire Showmax is to own distribution rights. The French media outfit announced that it plans to export MultiChoice’s content to foreign markets—and not the other way around yet. With Showmax being one of the most visible successes for local titles, it makes sense that Canal+ wants to unlock more content for export.
For MultiChoice, after six years on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE), the newly acquired company will delist on December 10, with Canal+ buying out all shareholders, including retail investors, at R125 ($7.24) per share—a tidy premium on last Friday’s R123.75 ($7.17) close, and perhaps a fair value for a stock that’s never crossed R155.20 ($9) in its history. Shareholders can challenge the deal within 30 business days, though few are expected to.
The big picture: Canal+ plans to fold MultiChoice into its broader group and pursue a JSE listing, giving retail investors a chance to own shares in the enlarged company. It has already cut decoder prices in South Africa by up to 40%. With its eyes fixed on Showmax, Canal+’s playbook is clear: control distribution, leave creative production to MultiChoice, and rebuild a wounded African media empire on the strength of local content and continental scale.
