DStv Media Sales nailed

AMOUNTING TO AN ACCUMULATIVE R180M FOR PRICE-FIXING Matter relates to a November 2011 investigation into MultiChoice company.

DStv Media Sales has admitted to price-fixing and fixing of trading conditions in contravention of the Competition Act.

It agreed to an accumulative remedy of R180 million.

Owned by MultiChoice Group, DStv Media Sales handles commercial airtime sales and on-air sponsorship sold to over 70 pay TV commercial channels and the two terrestrial M-Net channels.

The matter relates to a November 2011 investigation which found that, through the Media Credit Co-Ordinators (MCC), various media companies agreed to offer similar discounts and payment terms to advertising agencies that placed advertisements with MCC members.

MCC-accredited agencies were offered a 16.5% discount, while nonmembers were offered 15%.

The Competition Commission said it found that the practices restricted competition among the competing companies as they did not independently determine an element of a price in the form of discount or trading terms.

DStv Media Sales agreed to pay an administrative penalty of just over R22 million, R8 million to the Economic Development Fund over three years and agreed to provide 25% in bonus airtime for every rand of airtime bought by qualifying small agencies for a period of three years, which is subject to a total annual airtime cap of R50 million. – ANA