Team size: Four

What are the most significant cases and transactions that your legal team has recently been involved in?

Our team supports various group-wide projects and business units of the MultiChoice Group, a JSE listed company. MultiChoice is a dynamic and fast-moving pay television business, operating across multiple platforms including DTT, satellite, internet, mobile apps, OTT, social media platforms, and sports betting across 53 territories in Sub-Saharan Africa and its adjacent islands.

My highlights for the year included the contracting of major international sports broadcast rights in cricket and football. 2023 was particularly busy as we had four World Cups to contend with. I have been fortunate to have worked with the majority of domestic and international sports rights federations and rights holders, either preparing bids or dealing with acquisition contracts for various sporting codes. I also regularly draft production-related agreements for sports documentaries such as “Two Sides” and “Chasing the Sun I and II”.

Though I try to avoid costly litigation, by necessity, we pursue anti-piracy and copyright-related litigation in conjunction with our dedicated anti-piracy team, Irdeto, and have had significant successes across Africa, particularly in regard to World Cup and football properties.

Another highlight was my involvement in the contracting of two world-class, 20-camera 4K outside broadcast vans, customised to our specifications and among the most technologically advanced in the world. I also provide legal support to SuperSport Schools, which offers a free, award-winning app combined with live-produced and streamed school sports across South Africa. The best content is accessible on a dedicated linear channel. The product utilises AI automated ball tracking HD web cameras or small camera crews, producing a substantial amount of school sport footage annually. Parents, families, and pupils really appreciate this content and the ease of use of the platform.

Furthermore, I handle all legal-related work for the SuperSport United Football Club, which competes in the South African Premier Soccer League. This includes handling their sponsorship, commercial and supplier deals, operational matters, player disciplinaries, and player transfers. The work at SuperSport is variable, challenging, and pressured but rewarding as a sports lover.

What are some of the main trends impacting your industry in South Africa? 

We are noting an increase in streaming platforms offering sporting content across the world and anticipate this will impact the African continent. We are also noting extensive regulatory changes, which remain a challenge. Consumption patterns and the increased use of mobile phones will likely mean that viewers move away from traditional satellite decoders, particularly as internet penetration increases. Africa is very much constrained by high data costs, so partnering with mobile operators to offer bundled content and data offerings is underway, and we assist in structuring those deals.

Additionally, new platforms need to be in place to cater to the sports lover. We see the traditional pay-tv market being squeezed, propelling a need to move to new and innovative products. We have just launched our mobile-only English Premier League OTT product on Showmax. We see the business becoming more data-driven, increasing the need to protect that data to remain within legislative limits. Strategies and legislation are required to actively target piracy of expensive sporting content and provide real consequences for offenders. Some territories, such as Kenya, are leading the way in this regard, and other jurisdictions need to catch up.

Furthermore, we see the need to address the youth with sport and to meet them on the platforms on which they consume content and to provide new offerings of interest, such as e-gaming, virtual reality, and the metaverse.

What are some of the key developments that have affected your business over the past year?

The recent devaluation of the Naira and the volatility of the Rand have impacted our business, particularly since most international rights are acquired in Dollars or Euros. This has meant that we have had to insist on currency fluctuation clauses to peg rates, particularly on long-term deals. The issue of the Covid pandemic, now safely past, impacted us on how we dealt with force majeure impacts.

The need to implement AI-based and smaller flyaway crew production solutions offers more cost-effective productions, have been tested and are in use and currently being rolled out to new territories. The ever-changing regulatory environments in various territories impact us substantially, such as “must-carry” arrangements and sports of national interests, and an erosion of exclusivity of rights all have a marked impact on the value and exploitation of rights and their availability to viewers beyond pay-tv, which adds complexity.