TikTok partners with Communiqué + SABC’s digital-first push gains ground
TikTok bets on Africa’s creative class, MultiChoice steadies after regulatory storms, and SABC finds early wins in its digital pivot.
Hello,
In today’s Digest, we discussed:
Communiqué IRL Joburg’s headline sponsor
MultiChoice’s reprieve with regulators over its pricing hike
SABC’s bright spots
Centre Spread 🗞️
Tiktok is the headline sponsor for Communiqué IRL Johannesburg
The Communiqué team is excited to announce TikTok as the headline sponsor for the Johannesburg edition of our flagship networking event, Communiqué IRL (In Real Life), set to take place on Thursday, October 30, 2025.
With IRL, Communiqué brings together creatives, investors, policymakers, and other key stakeholders from across the African creative ecosystem, including the creator economy, in major cities across the continent. The goal is to deliberate on ideas and issues that drive growth, innovation, and sustainability within the sector.
This partnership underscores the social media powerhouse’s commitment to playing an active role in advancing the continent’s creator economy. As a partner, TikTok will help foster critical discussions around the future and growth of South Africa’s local creator ecosystem.
The Johannesburg edition is the third IRL event this year, following successful editions in Lagos and Nairobi, which were widely praised for sparking important conversations around the Nigerian film industry and the role of data in East Africa’s creative economy.
This time, the spotlight turns to South Africa, and we will discuss how the country’s creator class has evolved over the past decade and what lies ahead.
If you haven’t gotten your ticket yet, register here and join us as we shape the future of the African creative economy.
MultiChoice, Nigerian and Ghanaian regulators settle pricing dispute
Executives at MultiChoice can finally breathe a sigh of relief as the company makes progress in resolving its pricing disputes with Nigerian and Ghanaian regulators.
On Tuesday, October 7, Nigeria’s Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) withdrew the criminal charges filed against executives of MultiChoice Nigeria Limited. The withdrawn charge had accused the company of obstructing an investigation and ignoring a lawful summons related to its pricing practices, in violation of the FCCPC Act, 2018.
The dispute arose after MultiChoice executives failed to appear before the commission on February 25 and refused to submit documents linked to a summons over its March 1 subscription price review. FCCPC’s legal counsel reportedly told the Federal High Court that both parties had since reached an understanding, and a notice of withdrawal was filed on August 16.
Meanwhile, last week, Ghana’s Minister of Communications, Digital Technology and Innovation, Samuel Nartey George, announced that MultiChoice had agreed to give subscribers between 33% and 50% more value on their packages. This ends a standoff that began in late July. Ghanaian subscribers will begin enjoying the revised packages from October 1, 2025, for an initial three-month period, after which a joint committee will assess the results.
For MultiChoice, the development offers much-needed relief after months of increased regulatory pressure that has kept the company in the news almost nonstop since February. Its new majority owner, Groupe CANAL+, which increased its stake again over the course of the week, will now have to confront declining subscriber numbers and growing competition from streaming services. The settlements give the French media group room to steady operations and prepare for a strategic update expected in the first quarter of 2026, when it will outline its plans for MultiChoice’s next chapter.
SABC’s focus on digital transformation is paying off
The South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) may still be struggling with financial strain, but its digital transformation strategy is beginning to yield results.
According to its 2025 financial report released on October 3, the broadcaster recorded a 13% increase in traffic to its news website. On its streaming platform, SABC Plus, news content views increased from 1.8 million in the third quarter to 2.2 million in the fourth quarter, with more than 800,000 registered users. Podcast downloads on its OMNY audio platform surged by 290% year-on-year.
SABC also posted strong social media growth. Its X (Twitter) account now exceeds three million followers, Facebook followers grew 30%, and TikTok followers jumped 73%. On YouTube, total views rose 26% year-on-year to 308 million, with subscribers up 24% to 2.85 million.
Despite these gains, the broadcaster remains financially fragile. It reported a loss of $14.7 million (R253 million) — down 28% from the previous year — even as total revenue increased 1.3% to $290 million (R5.15 billion). Advertising and sponsorships accounted for 68.7% of the income, while TV licence fees contributed 14.7%, government grants accounted for 5.8%, and other services made up 10.8%.
CEO Nomsa Chabeli said the digital momentum reflects progress but warned that the SABC’s “obsolete” business model must be replaced with a more “sustainable and equitable” funding system. “Our current model was built for a world that no longer exists — one with captive radio and TV audiences. Today, we operate in a highly competitive, digital-first environment, but without the financial flexibility or funding structure our competitors enjoy,” she said.
The broadcaster’s renewed focus on digital transformation aims to futureproof its operations while pursuing a more viable funding model. The relaunch of SABC Plus in July 2024 and the upgrade of its news website were key components of this effort. Now, SABC is doubling down on its digital-first strategy, with plans to launch direct-to-home (DTH) devices to help recover audiences and advertising revenue.
Crunch Time 📈
Africa’s little slice of the global gaming pie
Catch Up 📬
Communiqué 90: The house that NAG Mag built
New Age Gaming (NAG) Magazine launched its first issue in April 1998 and has since remained a powerhouse in the South African gaming scene. Its flagship event, rAge Expo, is the largest gaming convention in South Africa, attracting over 40,000 attendees annually.
But like many print publications of its era, NAG faced a harsh reality in the early 2010s. As readers migrated online, the once-thriving print edition struggled to keep up, eventually folding under the weight of digital disruption.
Now, the magazine is making a nostalgic comeback. Following limited-edition releases in 2023 and 2024, the NAG team is considering a quarterly schedule if the 2025 edition performs well.
This week’s Communiqué essay revisits NAG’s legacy to contextualise these new plans to revive its print issue as a collector’s item.
Read the full essay here. Don’t forget to share with your friends, too.
Curiosity Cabinet 🗄️
This piece by Tochi Louis explains why and how Africa’s financial sector can play a defining role in supporting the continent’s creative economy.
Kenya’s Creative Economy Bill is under fire again. The country’s bloggers want legislators to add an expansive definition of “creative economy” that includes digital content creation.
This week’s Offscript guest, Jessica Hope, CEO of Wimbart, shares how hard work and community helped her build Africa’s foremost PR agency for tech startups.
Africa’s biggest tech conference, Moonshot by TechCabal, returns for the 2025 edition on October 15 & 16, 2025. Join us at the Creative Economy Track as we talk about the state of the industry on the continent and what’s next. Get your tickets here.
Join David, our founder, as he co-hosts the second edition of the Création Africa Forum (October 16–18; Victoria Island, Lagos), a French government initiative that fosters dialogue and cooperation between Africa and Europe. Register here.
Communiqué IRL, the Johannesburg edition, is happening live on October 30. If you haven’t registered yet, you are about to miss out on the best thing to ever happen in South Africa’s creator economy. Tickets are free; get yours here.
Over 500 business leaders and investors are gathering at the Counder Conference 2026 to discuss how to support the next generation of cultural and creative entrepreneurs.
Thank you for reading Communiqué! Please help us give Africa’s media and creative industries the coverage they deserve by donating here.
That’s it for this week’s Digest. See you next week.