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As FX Headwinds, Subscription Fee Issues Take Toll on Multichoice Results as published by Thisday Newspaper

The latest performance report of Multichoice, where it posted losses for the second time may be an eye opener that the company at the centre of a storm in Nigeria over the controversial review of subscription fees is indeed under serious pressure caused by the crisis in the foreign exchange market and other operating challenges, writes Festus Akanbi
For Multichoice, Africa’s leading entertainment company, this is certainly not a time to cheer. This is because its latest financial results have shown that contrary to popular belief, the company is not making enormous profits from its DStv satellite television service. The performance result which was in red confirmed that while the satellite television service contributes significantly to Multichoice’s revenue, the truth is that the company is not solely reliant on it.
MultiChoice reported loss-making for the year ended 31 March 2024 after incurring a net loss of 4.1 billion rand ($225.8 million at current exchange rate). The company recorded a loss for the second year running, its audited accounts released on Wednesday showed.
According to the company, the substantial net foreign exchange translation losses resulted from losses on, “USD-denominated non-quasi equity loans between MultiChoice Africa Holdings B.V. and MultiChoice Nigeria Limited.”
This, it added, “follows the depreciation of the Naira against the Dollar from a closing rate of N464.50 in FY23 to N1 308.00 in FY24.”
According to the income statement, revenue dropped 5.9 per cent to 55 billion rands due to a slide in subscription fees.
“The combination of foreign exchange headwinds and a lower subscriber base resulted in a net decline in group revenues of five per cent to ZAR56.0 billion,” MultiChoice said.
Counting the Gains of Diversification
The report showed that general and administrative expenses jumped to 18.4 billion rands from 16.6 billion rands a year earlier after surges in employee costs and software license expenses, weakening operating profit.
The report showed however that Multichoice’s diversification strategy has led to significant growth in other segments, such as Showmax, SuperSportBet, and Moment. These new revenue streams have contributed to the company’s overall performance, offsetting some of the challenges faced by DStv.
According to the financial results, several of the company’s other products and services also performed well. Showmax, in particular, has shown impressive growth, with a successful relaunch across 44 markets in sub-Saharan Africa and a significant increase in active users.
Highlighting the company’s achievements in the face of adversity, Multichoice Group Chief Executive Officer, CEO, Calvo Mawela, said despite a tough year, the company delivered a trading profit margin of 26 per cent in South Africa and a 48 per cent increase in trading profit in Africa.
“We’ve just published our results for the past financial year, which ended in March 2024. The year has been like no other in terms of economic turmoil, but we showed resilience and navigated significant headwinds – managing our business with focus, dedication, and tenacity,” said Mawela.
Emphasis on Efficiency
He added that the company’s financial results were a testament to its ability to adapt and innovate in a rapidly changing market, noting that the emphasis on efficiency has positioned the company for future growth, despite the challenges faced by its satellite television service.
“KingMakers delivered strong growth in the online business in Nigeria by growing monthly active online users by 37 per cent and online gross gaming revenues by 26 per cent, year-on-year in constant currency. The business launched BetKing Casino and a virtual football sportsbook service, BetKing FootballGO, in Nigeria and SuperSportBet in South Africa”, the CEO stated.
He continued: “SuperSport continues to bring fans the best of sports from across the globe. In the past year, we broadcast over 34,000 action-packed sports events, more live sports than any other broadcaster in the world. Highlights of the year were the Rugby World Cup, Cricket World Cup, Netball World Cup, FIFA Women’s World Cup, and AFCON.
“Also, SuperSport Schools continues to grow strongly and more than doubled its registered user base during the year. Showcasing South Africa’s talent of the future, the platform displayed 49,000 hours of live programming across 43 different sports, covering 1,100 schools and 14,500 teams.”
Mawela emphasised the company’s commitment to creating authentic African stories. “We are the largest producer of original content on the African continent and remain committed to creating and growing authentic African stories. We produced over 6,500 hours of local content, to bring our local content library to 84,000 hours of content. More than half of our general entertainment budget is spent on local content.”
Commitment to Innovation
With a cost savings target of ZAR2 billion (108.9 million) set for the upcoming year, the company is poised to continue its trajectory of growth and innovation.
“We know that nobody else has the content we have for the customers we serve. This puts us in a great position to prosper – by better understanding our customers’ entertainment choices, identifying their needs, and tapping into the growth opportunities that arise along the way.
“In the year ahead, our focus will be to drive scale in Showmax, Moment, and SuperSportBet and to grow DStv Insurance, DStv Internet, and DStv Stream. We are purposefully pursuing our vision of becoming Africa’s entertainment platform of choice with determination and vigour. Significant progress has been made towards achieving this strategic objective. Our combined efforts will put our business in a strong position to prosper once the macro-economic environment stabilises,” the Multichoice boss assured
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How Primate Ayodele Foretold Pipeline Explosion In Rivers (VIDEO)

An explosion has rocked a section of the Trans Niger Pipeline in Bodo Community in Gonna Local Government Area of Rivers State.
The explosion occurred late on Monday night near the Bodo-Bonny Road under construction.
Thick black smoke was seen billowing into the atmosphere, with a raging fire spreading fast into the mangrove from a video that emerged on Tuesday morning.
This development has fulfilled the prophecy of Nigerian prophet, Primate Elijah Ayodele which he shared in October 2024 in an interview session.
Primate Ayodele had warned the Nigerian oil sector that there will be a major pipeline explosion in the country if care isn’t taken.
In this video, he specifically mentioned some states which included Rivers state.
These were his words:
“Let us watch against pipeline explosion in the following state: Lagos, Kano, Kaduna, Ogun state, Rivers state…, Let us be watchful in this environment against such nasty and unpleasant situation.”
The fulfillment of this prophecy is an indication that people don’t listen to God’s warnings through his prophets and if people listen, several things can be avoided.
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From Lagos to Potomac: How Nigerian women are shaping The Real Housewives franchise

The Real Housewives franchise has become a cultural phenomenon, offering a front-row seat into the lives of powerful women balancing business, family, friendships and everything else in-between. The franchise first became a global sensation in the US, and its influence extended to Africa, where Nigerian women are making waves both locally and internationally. Across the Atlantic, The Real Housewives of Potomac (RHOP)’s Dr Wendy Osefo has brought Nigerian representation, balancing her reality TV presence with a career as a professor, political commentator, and author. Born in Nigeria and raised in the US, Wendy has remained vocal about her heritage, often incorporating her cultural identity into conversations on the show. Image courtesy @wendyOsefo Instagram Halfway through its third season, The Real Housewives of Lagos (RHOLagos) continues to deliver everything viewers signed up for: lavish lifestyles, power moves, and shifting friendships. With RHOLagos setting new standards for African reality TV and Wendy Osefo expanding Nigerian visibility on an international stage, the franchise continues to evolve while keeping its signature mix of glamour and real-life drama. RHOLagos has kept audiences engaged with shifting alliances, business triumphs, and high-stakes confrontations. The Lagos cast, Adeola “Diiadem” Adeyemi, Carolyna Hutchings, Dabota Lawson, Laura Ikeji, Mariam Timmer, and Sophia Momodu are making it clear that beyond the designer outfits and exclusive events, real-life relationships and ambitions are at the heart of the show. Meanwhile, RHOP’s Wendy Osefo remains a standout personality in the franchise, balancing academia, media, and personal life all while embracing her Nigerian roots. With reality TV becoming a key part of entertainment culture, Showmax is making it more accessible this March with the Shikini Deal, offering a limited-time-only deal on its General Entertainment plans from as low as N1,000. For those looking to catch up on RHOLagos or explore other must-watch shows, this presents a timely opportunity to do so at a lower cost.As RHOLagos Season 3 heads toward its finale and fans in Africa catch up on Season 9 of RHOP courtesy Showmax, one thing is clear – Nigerian women are shaping conversations in reality TV, both at home and on the global stage. And with Showmax leading the charge in showcasing these stories, fans have a front-row seat to all the drama, success, and sisterhood that make The Real Housewives universe so compelling.
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PRIMATE ELIJAH AYODELE:Celebrating a man of voluminous and comprehensive spiritual, human progressiveness (Part 1)

compiled by Bunmi Orija
Right from childhood through adulthood, he has always being endowed with the spirit of giving, benevolence, passion for humanity and above all an uncommon display of God’s fear. He is an embodiment of love, unity and oneness, an apostle of gracious livelihood as well as an embodiment of strict adherence to the Gospel.
Welcome to the enviable spiritual word of Primate Elijah Ayodele, the Founder and General Overseer, INRI Evangelical Spiritual Church Worldwide.
Digging into his spiritual and philanthropic antecedents is like trying to sell ice to the Eskimos or at most, filling a basket with logs of water. His qualities in these regards are immeasurable. Primate Ayodele’s magnanimity and contributions to the aggradizement of humans are jaw-dropping and simply, amazing. Over decades, he has been an extremely proactive spiritual leader not only in the African continent but all over the globe.
Primate Ayodele had, on several occasions stood as the voice of the masses, clamoring for better governance and sanity in people’s administration. He has been very instrumental to the democratic comportment of various state governors, state and federal legislators as well as presidents. Know as the only man of God with the most accurate predictions, Primate Ayodele had, through his divinely inspired words, giving standing orders to governments at different levels.
A sagacious man of God, immensely blessed with unalloyed spiritual endowment, Primate Ayodele is today, very well respected and reverred amongst all spheres of the global vast communities, making great spiritual impact in virtually all the continents of the globe. Having traveled far and wide, the emphatic and quintessential Prophet of God, Primate Ayodele recognized the suffering some segment of the universe go through.
His experience or the sorry sights he saw in some parts of the world, most especially in Africa, coerced him to dexteriously embark on comprehensive and massive humanitarian procedures comprising empowering the poor, enhancing the standards of the needy, putting smiles on the faces of the vulnerable, changing the stories of the no privileged, revamping the lives of widows, orphans, widowers, the disabled, the visually impaired, the sick etc, giving them a brand new platform to live happily again.
Obviously, Primate Ayodele is a life giver, an enigmatic man of God whose curiosity in discovering and nurturing lost souls into the Vineyard of God knows no boundaries. This is because Primate Ayodele is a detrabilized prophet of God who aligns easily with the Hausa, Igbo, Ibiobio, Efik, Idoma and Yoruba etnics.
Primate Elijah Ayodele’s life radiates perfect Esa and willingness to do the wills of God. He absolutely knows why God sent him and he is not living any stone unturned in ensuring that he fulfills God’s mission and adhere to the promises he made to his Creator on humanity.
Years down the lane and uptill now, Primate Ayodele has been involved in several commendale humanitarian activities some of which include commissioning of health facilities as well as donation of drugs and modern day medical equipment, donation of food items and provision of borehole to communities, payment of school fees of pupils.and students at all levels to augment their patents/guardians’ spending, purchase and presentation of WAEC, GCE, NECO and JAMB forms for potential students, giving out cars, tricycles, busses and cash gifts to support businessmen and women amongst other magnanimous activities too numerous to list here.
As a true believer and servant of God, Primate Ayodele believes both the two major religions, Christian and Islam serve the same God, hence his resolve to construct an ultra-modern mosque for Muslim faithful. He also built a bakery to subsidize bread for the poor etc.
He plays very important roles in the lives of his church members, extends love to outsiders and maintains high level of spiritual contributions to erring sinners. His passion for God’s words endeared him into the hearts of many distinguished personalities curring across all sectors of life. Primate Ayodele maintains mutual affinity with kings, political leaders, business tycoons, diplomats, entertainers, sportsmen and women among others.
Watch out for more on this fantastically created man of God, an amazingly endowed prophet and an enigma in global Christendom., Primate Elijah Ayodele of INRI Evangelical Spiritual Church worldwide.
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