Canal+'s last minute deal rescues Warner Bros. Discovery channels
A last-minute new multi-year deal on 31 December with Warner Bros. Discovery and Canal+ sees all 12 existing pay-TV channels from Warner Bros. Discovery to remain on DStv in South Africa and across sub-Saharan Africa.
Canal+ signs new multi-year deal with Warner Bros. Discovery to keep 12 TV channels on DStv (Image source: © 123rf 123rf)
The deal also lets M-Net show HBO content.
DStv was set to lose the channels on 1 January 2026 as its channel agreement lapsed and Warner Bros. Discovery's acquisition by Netflix.
The deal also includes the roll-out of the HBO Max streamer in 2026 in Africa as a tile through MultiChoice.
According to TV with Thinus "part of the contentious and months-long channel carriage agreement extension negotiations was the fact that Canal+ as the new owner of Africa's MultiChoice, didn't just want to renew the South African and sub-Saharan African rights, but rather as a subset lump Africa into a new, wider overall carriage agreement with Europe.
"It was therefore also no longer MultiChoice negotiating with Warner Bros. Discovery but Canal+ negotiating with WBD - and not just for South Africa, or Africa, but for Africa and Europe as a bigger umbrella rights deal."
Bigger carriage agreement
Canal+'s African deal is folded into a bigger carriage agreement between Canal+ and WBD for Europe where Canal+ at the same time negotiated for the renewal of Cartoon Network, Cartoonito, and CNN International in Romania, Hungary, the Czech Republic, and Slovakia; the renewal of Warner TV in the Czech Republic and the renewal of HBO Max, HBO, and Cinemax in Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, and Romania.
Besides South Africa, the new multi-year agreement between Canal+ and WBD covers African countries including Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Cabo Verde, Central African Republic, Chad, Congo, Comoros, Côte d’Ivoire, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Djibouti, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mayotte, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, South Sudan, Réunion, Rwanda, São Tomé and Príncipe, Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Saint Helena, Somalia, Eswatini (ex. Swaziland), Sudan, Tanzania, The Gambia, Togo, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe.
Strengthen content
Canal+ isn't willing to disclose for how many years the new channel carriage agreement will keep WBD's content visible in South Africa and across the African continent.
What it did say in a press statement is that the "expanded agreement covers both the distribution of HBO Max and the renewal of several Warner Bros. Discovery thematic channels across numerous regions in Africa and Europe.
"This agreement enables Canal+ to strengthen its entertainment, kids, news, and documentary channel offerings in African markets."
TV with Thinus says that Warner Bros. Discovery, in response to a media query, says,"We are pleased to confirm that Warner Bros. Discovery and MultiChoice have reached an agreement that will see all our channels and content remain available to DStv and GOtv viewers across Africa.
"We value our long‑standing partnership with MultiChoice and remain committed to delivering the world‑class entertainment, kids' programming, factual content and global brands that audiences know and love."
WBD also declined to disclose the duration of its multi-year agreement for South Africa and Africa with Canal+'s MultiChoice, stating, "We cannot disclose the duration of the agreement as this information is commercially sensitive."
HBO Max
Commenting on when HBO Max will be added and rolled out, it says that HBO Max is now available in more than 100 markets worldwide and that their focus is on the upcoming expansion into the UK, Germany and Italy in early 2026.
"Beyond these planned launches, we continue to evaluate opportunities to grow our global footprint in markets where we can build a meaningful, scaled, and profitable direct-to-consumer business, and we will consider additional market entries thereafter."
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