Tag Archives: Gregoire Ndjaka

AUB, Canal+ work against ACON piracy

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Officials from the African Union of Broadcasting (AUB) and French broadcasting giant Canal+ Group discussed issues relating to TV signal piracy during a recent meeting held ahead of the upcoming Africa Cup of Nations (ACON) football tournament.

Grégoire Ndjaka

With the 2021 tournament set to take place in January and February next year after being postponed due to Covid, the meeting was aimed at ensuring technical and legal measures are put in place to secure the signal of African channels broadcasting the tournament.

According to the AUB, piracy was a significant problem during the last ACON, which was held in Egypt in 2019. African broadcasters spend significant money to acquire the rights to show the games, while also relying on ad revenue earned during their coverage of the tournament.

AUB CEO Grégoire Ndjaka said: “Our permanent concern is the protection of TV signal. The fight ought to be carried at all levels. Are you allowed to screen the match? If yes, there is no problem. Secure your signal. But if you don’t have a broadcast contract, should you be allowed to operate illegally while others are paying? That’s the problem.”

From a technical point of view, Alexandre Gruner, director of channel relations and partnerships at Canal+, said; “If we have compelling evidence and take note of any illegal activity on Canal+ bouquet concerning AFCON or the FWC [next year’s Fifa World Cup], rest assured, we will suspend your signal.”

Sebastien Punturello, MD of Canal+ Senegal, added: “I spend at least 20-30% of my time fighting signal piracy. For several years, we have actively led the battle thanks to the support of local authorities, our relations, various ministries and the National Audiovisual Regulatory Council – CNRA Senegal.

“Almost everywhere on the continent, television signal piracy is developing using handcrafted techniques, helped by ICTs and other rival groups whose audience rates sometimes compete with those of Canal+, whereas they haven’t acquired the right to broadcast in certain territories in sub-Saharan Africa.”

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AUB, Canal+ fight against TV signal piracy

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Officials from the African Union of Broadcasting (AUB) and French broadcasting giant Canal+ met in Dakar this month ahead of the upcoming Africa Cup of Nations to discuss television signal piracy and how it threatens intellectual property rights.

Grégoire Ndjaka

The meeting was aimed at ensuring technical and legal measures were put in place to secure the signals of African channels, whose governments spend huge sums of money to acquire the rights to sporting competitions.

Both parties also spoke out on the issue of broadcasting rights, since TV channels depend on the advertising market during major competitions.

The AUB said that during the African Nations Championship, held in Cameroon in January and February, several of the 32 games delivered were screened illegally.

Grégoire Ndjaka, CEO of the AUB, said: “Our permanent concern is the protection of TV signal. The fight ought to be carried at all levels. Are you allowed to screen the match? If yes, there is no problem. Secure your signal. But if you don’t have a broadcast contract, should you be allowed to operate illegally while others are paying? That’s the problem.”

From a technical point of view, Alexandre Gruner, director of channel relations and partnerships at Canal+, said: “If we have compelling evidence and take note of any illegal activity on the Canal+ bouquet concerning the Africa Cup of Nations or the FWC, be rest assured, we will suspend your signal.”

Sebastien Punturello, managing director of Canal+ Senegal, added: “I spend at least 20-30% of my time fighting signal piracy. For several years, we have actively led the battle thanks to the support of local authorities, our relations, various ministries –culture, communication and justice – as well as [Senegal’s] National Audiovisual Regulatory Council.

“Almost everywhere on the continent, television signal piracy is developing using handcraft techniques, helped by [technology companies] and other rival groups whose audience rates sometimes compete with those of Canal+ whereas they haven’t acquired the right to broadcast in certain territories in sub-Saharan Africa”.

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AUB, CAF reach deal to broadcast AFCON

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The African Union of Broadcasters (AUB) and the Confederation of African Football (CAF) have reached an agreement to provide coverage of the 33rd CAF African Cup of Nations (AFCON) across the continent.

Gregoire Ndjaka

The delayed AFCON 2021 tournament takes place from January 9 to February 6, 2022 in Cameroon. In addition, the AUB is partnering with Afrosport, a London-based media company, to provide exclusive sales and marketing support for the event.

Gregoire Ndjaka, CEO of the AUB, said: “We are thrilled to deliver what will be Africa’s best ever televised AFCON event.

“In recent times, it has been well publicised that events have not been well served, due to uncertainty in the rights process, leading to many broadcasters not signing up to the event until late, destabilising the commercial viability of the broadcast and hindering the viewer experience.

“CAF has recognised the unique role that the AUB plays in Africa TV, and we are encouraged by the prospects for public service TV and sports coverage on the landscape. I am glad that to-date more than 25 of our broadcast affiliates have reached agreement to televise AFCON 2021, with more expected to sign-up in the coming weeks.

“The AUB acknowledges and supports the new CAF management for school football development and the Super League project, which is a big innovation that will contribute efficiently to sustain the development of the football industry in the Africa continent.”

“Afrosport is excited for the opportunity to work with the AUB and its network of public service and private broadcasters to deliver the best collective sporting experiences to Africa’s viewers,” said Andy Howes, co-founder and executive director of Afrosport.

“Together we will seek to leverage a network of key media partnerships to unlock the true commercial potential of sport through the engagement of the continents 1.3 billion people and 800 million-strong TV audience.”

The AUB offers the largest TV network on the African continent. It has an audience reach spanning more than 120 major cities and many rural communities and its affiliate network reaches over 100 million TV households.

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