A number of developments of interest and mergers have been reported in the telecoms, media and technology sector in the months of June and July 2016.
In the television broadcasting market, the Competition Appeal Court (CAC) ruled the agreement between the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) and MultiChoice, in terms of which MultiChoice (a pay-TV company) has the right to air two of SABC's channels, does not give rise to a notifiable merger in terms of the Competition Act. The matter has been referred to the Competition Commission (commission) for investigation.
From a regulatory and competition perspective, it is also worth noting that the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (ICASA) launched an inquiry into the subscription television broadcasting market. The inquiry is aimed at identifying the challenges faced by new entrants in the market and addressing the regulatory impediments to effective competition. It is anticipated the inquiry will be completed by the financial year-end.
It was also reported that Econet Wireless Global (Econet) is set to acquire Neotel for ZAR6.55 billion. Econet is partnering with Royal Bafokeng Holdings, which agreed to a 30% stake in Neotel. Econet currently controls Internet provider, Liquid Telecom, and mobile phone company, Econet Wireless Zimbabwe.
There have been two mergers reported:
* The commission unconditionally approved the intermediate merger whereby BoE Private Equity Investments (BoE) intends to acquire Comsol Networks. BoE invests equity capital in acquisitions, buyouts and the expansion of mid-market unlisted companies. Comsol Networks specialises in the designing and building of customised terrestrial wireless access infrastructure (fixed wireless networks) for customers in the private and public sectors.
* The commission unconditionally approved the intermediate merger, whereby Masimong Technologies intends to acquire Tellumat. Masimong Technologies is a shelf company that has been set up for the purpose of holding shares in Tellumat. The acquiring group has interests in firms which are active in the following sectors: media, agriculture, financial services, energy, mining, chemicals and industrials (manufacturing). Tellumat provides a wide range of IT services and designs, manufactures, distributes and installs its own and imported electronic technology products and provides custom solutions for the aviation, telecommunications, defence and contract manufacturing markets.
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