The Competition Tribunal on Monday said it had dismissed an "exception application" brought by MultiChoice over a channel-supply agreement with the SABC, which it inked during the Jacob Zuma presidency 12 years ago.
"The case arises from a complaint lodged by Caxton and CTP Publishers and Printers, the SOS Support Public Broadcasting Coalition and the Media Monitoring Project Benefit Trust," the tribunal said in a statement.
"The applicants allege that a commercial and master channel distribution agreement, concluded between MultiChoice and the SABC in 2013, constituted a notifiable merger under the Competition Act, and that the parties failed to notify the Competition Commission as required by the act," it explained.
"In terms of the agreement, the SABC agreed to let MultiChoice carry its unencrypted free-to-air channels on MultiChoice's subscription platforms in exchange for payment, with a clause allowing MultiChoice to terminate or suspend the agreement and claim a refund if the SABC encrypted its free-to-air channels."
According to the tribunal, once the investigation got underway, the following events occurred: