Big Showmax-Comcast bonus for former MultiChoice chair

MultiChoice’s erstwhile chair Imtiaz Patel was paid a bonus in the region of R23m for the successful conclusion of a deal that saw the company sell a stake in Showmax to US media firm Comcast, owned by NBCUniversal Media.

The deal saw the US firm hold 30% of Showmax, in a transaction that created a pan-African streaming major built on Comcast’s streaming platform.

MutliChoice’s annual report published on Friday shows negotiations began during the Covid-19 period and Patel in his role as the group’s then executive chair played a central role, and he was rewarded with a pay cheque of about $1.25m (R22.6m) for his efforts in the 2024 financial year.

Patel was also paid a $1m annual fee “relating to the service and restraint agreement entered into with the MultiChoice group as chairman for the 2024 financial year”. He also received travel reimbursements related to business travel, with his total pay for the year under review coming in at $2.5m.

“Mr Patel played a leading role in the successful completion of the Showmax deal with Comcast during FY24. He started developing the deal over the Covid period, while executive chair, when discussions commenced for a strategic partner,” the company said.

“On the recommendation of the remuneration committee at the time, a bonus of $1.25m was approved, and payable on the completion of two key deliverables within the prescribed period. These deliverables included: 50% payable on the signing of all required agreements by April 2023, and 50% payable following the delivery of the commercial launch by early 2024.”

Patel relinquished the role in October 2020, giving Calvo Mawela full executive responsibilities.

MultiChoice announced last year that it had entered into an agreement with media giants NBCUniversal from the US and the UK’s Sky, to create a new Showmax service.

Patel stood down from the chair role in April, replaced by Elias Masilela. This was a change in the company’s approach as it had three weeks earlier said Patel would remain chair until the Canal+ deal was done.

The French company is close to taking over the once cash cow of Naspers, in a deal north of R30bn.

MultiChoice’s annual report also shows the CEO Mawela was paid a total of $2.9m, while the group’s CFO Tim Jacobs was paid R28m.

The group, which reported its worst financial performance in its history in the year to the end of March, said Mawela and Jacobs had met several of their targets in the period.

Key projects

It said some of the factors that weighed in Mawela’s favour was that he “successfully executed and implemented key projects, including mergers & acquisitions and new business lines” and that he “exceeded targets relating to cash extraction from Nigeria on local cash generation targets for the year.”

The company said Jacobs exceeded targets by achieving total cost savings of R1.3bn in SA, and more than $120m in rest of Africa, and had exceeded target in settling “all required tax matters on favourable terms, including Nigeria”.

The annual report shows the company terminated a consultancy contract with Kgomotso Moroka, one of its longest-serving board members, after investors said the agreement put her role as an independent director in question.

She was paid R390,000 by the time the agreement was terminated, down from the R1.5m she was paid in the year ended March 2023 for services rendered to the group.

Fellow board member Jim Volkwyn, who also chaired the remuneration committee, kept his consultancy contract and earned R6.5m in the year under review, up more than R2m from the R5.1m he was paid in the prior year.

The group said after external legal advice it determined that the agreement did not affect Volkwyn’s categorisation as an independent non-executive director.

“The consultancy agreement, entered into between the group and Jim, is for professional advisory services provided to the group CEO on a regular and extensive basis. The scope of Jim’s consultancy services is global in nature and involves advising on key group strategies and projects,” the company said.

“This agreement is complementary to his role as director and involves an annual fee for the significant amount of additional time and effort to provide global strategic input to the group.”

khumalok@businesslive.co.za