Close Menu
TechCentralTechCentral

    Subscribe to the newsletter

    Get the best South African technology news and analysis delivered to your e-mail inbox every morning.

    Facebook X (Twitter) YouTube LinkedIn
    WhatsApp Facebook X (Twitter) LinkedIn YouTube
    TechCentralTechCentral
    • News

      Ramaphosa blasts Trump over threatened Brics tariffs

      8 July 2025

      Court battle brewing over contentious Joburg CCTV by-law

      7 July 2025

      Biometrics boss slams home affairs over R10 ID query fee

      7 July 2025

      TCS | Connecting Saffas – Renier Lombard on The Lekker Network

      7 July 2025

      Rain’s new Loop lets you carry your Wi-Fi and music everywhere

      7 July 2025
    • World

      Cupertino vs Brussels: Apple challenges Big Tech crackdown

      7 July 2025

      Grammarly acquires e-mail start-up Superhuman

      1 July 2025

      Apple considers ditching its own AI in Siri overhaul

      1 July 2025

      Jony Ive’s first AI gadget could be … a pen

      30 June 2025

      Bumper orders for Xiaomi’s YU7 SUV heighten threat to Tesla

      27 June 2025
    • In-depth

      Siemens is battling Big Tech for AI supremacy in factories

      24 June 2025

      The algorithm will sing now: why musicians should be worried about AI

      20 June 2025

      Meta bets $72-billion on AI – and investors love it

      17 June 2025

      MultiChoice may unbundle SuperSport from DStv

      12 June 2025

      Grok promised bias-free chat. Then came the edits

      2 June 2025
    • TCS

      TechCentral Nexus S0E4: Takealot’s big Post Office jobs plan

      4 July 2025

      TCS | Tech, townships and tenacity: Spar’s plan to win with Spar2U

      3 July 2025

      TCS+ | First Distribution on the latest and greatest cloud technologies

      27 June 2025

      TCS+ | First Distribution on data governance in hybrid cloud environments

      27 June 2025

      TCS+ | First Distribution on cloud cost management in Microsoft Azure

      26 June 2025
    • Opinion

      In defence of equity alternatives for BEE

      30 June 2025

      E-commerce in ICT distribution: enabler or disruptor?

      30 June 2025

      South Africa pioneered drone laws a decade ago – now it must catch up

      17 June 2025

      AI and the future of ICT distribution

      16 June 2025

      Singapore soared – why can’t we? Lessons South Africa refuses to learn

      13 June 2025
    • Company Hubs
      • Africa Data Centres
      • AfriGIS
      • Altron Digital Business
      • Altron Document Solutions
      • Altron Group
      • Arctic Wolf
      • AvertITD
      • Braintree
      • CallMiner
      • CambriLearn
      • CYBER1 Solutions
      • Digicloud Africa
      • Digimune
      • Domains.co.za
      • ESET
      • Euphoria Telecom
      • Incredible Business
      • iONLINE
      • Iris Network Systems
      • LSD Open
      • NEC XON
      • Network Platforms
      • Next DLP
      • Ovations
      • Paracon
      • Paratus
      • Q-KON
      • SevenC
      • SkyWire
      • Solid8 Technologies
      • Telit Cinterion
      • Tenable
      • Vertiv
      • Videri Digital
      • Wipro
      • Workday
    • Sections
      • AI and machine learning
      • Banking
      • Broadcasting and Media
      • Cloud services
      • Contact centres and CX
      • Cryptocurrencies
      • Education and skills
      • Electronics and hardware
      • Energy and sustainability
      • Enterprise software
      • Fintech
      • Information security
      • Internet and connectivity
      • Internet of Things
      • Investment
      • IT services
      • Lifestyle
      • Motoring
      • Public sector
      • Retail and e-commerce
      • Science
      • SMEs and start-ups
      • Social media
      • Talent and leadership
      • Telecoms
    • Events
    • Advertise
    TechCentralTechCentral
    Home » Broadcasting and Media » Russia’s RT is no longer available on DStv

    Russia’s RT is no longer available on DStv

    By Duncan McLeod2 March 2022
    Twitter LinkedIn Facebook WhatsApp Email Telegram Copy Link
    News Alerts
    WhatsApp

    RT, the Russian state-owned news channel formerly known as Russia Today, is no longer available on DStv, just one day after MultiChoice Group said it had no intention of canning it. But the decision was out of the pay-television broadcaster’s hands.

    Viewers who tune into DStv channel 407 – where RT is meant to be housed – are now greeted with a message saying the “channel is closed” and are encouraged to check the television guide for when it might open again.

    The closure of the channel was spotted by an eagle-eyed TechCentral reader on Wednesday evening. The channel also seems to have been suspended from the online streaming version of DStv – the stream simply wouldn’t start when TechCentral tried to play it.

    The channel will not be carried on the DStv platform until further notice

    The channel’s disappearance comes a day after MultiChoice told this publication that it would not pull the channel of its pay-TV bouquets, despite an EU-wide ban and restrictions placed on it – and another Russian news broadcaster Sputnik – by technology giants including Google, YouTube, Microsoft, Meta Platforms and Twitter.

    But MultiChoice, it has transpired, had nothing to do with taking RT off DStv. In response to a query from TechCentral, the company confirmed RT was pulled off its platform effective 2 March and “not be carried on the DStv platform until further notice”.

    “Sanctions imposed on Russia have led to the global distributor of the channel ceasing to provide the broadcast feed to all suppliers, including MultiChoice,” it said.

    Satellite services

    MultiChoice relies on satellite backhaul links to receive its programming. It also distributes its channels to viewers using an Intelsat satellite. Intelsat is headquartered in Luxembourg, which is a member state of the EU.

    The bans and restrictions on RT and Sputnik come as many nations impose severe sanctions on Russia for invading Ukraine, a move that is expected to cripple the country’s economy. Harsh sanctions have also been imposed on Putin and his inner circle, as well as many of the country’s oligarchs, who have prospered in the corrupt Russian system.

    South Africa is not one of the nations that has imposed sanctions, and the governing ANC has strong historical ties to Russia and continues to have good relations with it.

    Meanwhile, communications regulator Icasa also weighed in on RT’s removal from DStv. Icasa said in a statement issued late on Wednesday evening that it will approach MultiChoice about the decision.

    Icasa chairman Keabetswe Modimoeng

    “Given the underlying principle of the South African broadcasting system for promoting a plurality of views, it is only prudent for Icasa to enquire with DStv on the rationale for the discontinuation of the RT channel,” said Icasa CEO Keabetswe Modimoeng in the statement.

    Icasa said it “would like to put it on record that the broadcast of RT on the DStv platform is and continues to be a commercial agreement between the subscription TV broadcaster, MultiChoice and RT”.

    The authority’s role in the broadcasting of RT has been solely limited to channel authorisation as submitted by the licensee (in this case, MultiChoice) and approved by Icasa prior to the channel being introduced.

    “This is a regulatory requirement fulfilled by the licensee before introducing any new channel for consumption by the South African public,” the regulator said.

    “Our licensing and compliance division has not received any notification by MultiChoice confirming the discontinuation of the channel on its DStv platform. It is in the public interest to know the reasons for this discontinuation since the authorisation was approved by the authority,” said Modimoeng.  – © 2022 NewsCentral Media



    DStv MultiChoice RT Russia Today Sputnik
    Subscribe to TechCentral Subscribe to TechCentral
    Share. Facebook Twitter LinkedIn WhatsApp Telegram Email Copy Link
    Previous ArticleMTN tops R200/share for first time in seven years
    Next Article The Digital CFO: Reinventing the finance leadership role

    Related Posts

    MultiChoice to sell SuperSport United after 31 years of ownership

    3 July 2025

    MultiChoice may unbundle SuperSport from DStv

    12 June 2025

    MultiChoice’s TV empire shrinks – but its ‘side hustles’ are holding strong

    12 June 2025
    Company News

    Huawei launches next-gen fibre-to-the-room solution

    7 July 2025

    Remote monitoring tools: IT lifesavers or hacker gateways?

    7 July 2025

    The school placement crisis is getting worse

    7 July 2025
    Opinion

    In defence of equity alternatives for BEE

    30 June 2025

    E-commerce in ICT distribution: enabler or disruptor?

    30 June 2025

    South Africa pioneered drone laws a decade ago – now it must catch up

    17 June 2025

    Subscribe to Updates

    Get the best South African technology news and analysis delivered to your e-mail inbox every morning.

    © 2009 - 2025 NewsCentral Media

    Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.