The National Broadcasting Board of Botswana has extended the offer of a broadcast licence to Black Entertainment Satellite Television (BEStv) located in Gaborone, Botswana and owned by Black Earth Communications (BEC) based in Johannesburg.
Andrew Jones, representative for BEStv, said on Monday: “Clearly we are delighted by this offer and we look forward to operating as a licensed pay TV service in Africa. However, with the offer come terms and conditions which we will begin negotiating shortly. We are very optimistic, however, that these matters will be settled and that we will be able to move forward and be up and running this year as a licensed operator.”
BEC applied for the licence in January and has made no secret of its intention to enter the pay TV market as a competitor to Multichoice.
“The days of monopoly rule are over and I take Multichoice’s words at face value when they say that they welcome competition. I think we both agree that with competition come many benefits for the market and for the consumer. I believe that most consumers will opt to add on our service to whatever service they already have, rather than eliminate one service for another. But they do need a choice of different options and that’s what we’re going to bring.”
Jones says the market BEStv will be looking at is the emerging black middle class.
“We want the black middle class and we are confident that they will want us once they see what we have to offer, which is really good information, entertainment and service.
“But that doesn’t rule out the white market because, let’s face it, black people have been watching and enjoying white entertainment forever. So why can’t the opposite be true. We’re not pointing to race so much as lifestyle in defining our market, and these days and times a lot of different kinds of lifestyles are starting to merge.”
Jones says that he is glad the process has moved to the next level.
“Well, now I think we can start looking at moving to the next level which is building an infrastructure, finalising our service provider/management team and entertaining offers from the capital market. We’ve had quite a few feelers, but now we can talk seriously about what it takes to do this. I think those in the capital market who know the media industry understand clearly the potential of the pay TV market in Africa. So further funding shouldn’t be a problem.
“The big victory here though is for small business, because what it shows is that if you work hard and are innovative enough you can at the very least get into the game. Once in the game, you might just win.”
In terms of the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (Icasa), Jones says he just hopes for fair treatment.
“In a short while there are going to be two players operating as licensed broadcasters out of Botswana, BEStv and Multichoice. What we’re saying is that if Multichoice got permission from Icasa to operate in the South African market as a licensed operator out of Botswana, then why can’t we?”
Finally, Jones says: “The surprise for us has been the Botswanans. We didn’t know that much about the broadcast terrain up there, and it being a small country I must say we had our reservations. The number of world-class broadcast professionals in Botswana is way out of proportion to its size as a country and that’s great.
“So with them running the show in Gaborone, I am extremely confident that we can give Multichoice or whoever is in the pay TV market, a run for their money. So let the games begin, because the best is yet to come.” — I-Net Bridge