StarTimes enters Angola with businessman Domingues
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on Expansão
Chinese company StarTimes is entering Angola through a joint venture with businessman Manuel Alberto Domingues, owner of Banda TV, and partner Hantex Internacional. The new entity, authorised by President João Lourenço, is 21% owned by Angolan interests, according to Expansão.
The StarTimes platform is due to enter the Angolan market through StarTimes - Mídia Angola, a company created in August and authorised to market television services in the country, according to the company register consulted by Expansão. The operation brings together Chinese company Hantex Internacional Co. Lda and Angolan businessman Manuel Alberto Domingues, owner of the AfroMusic and Banda TV channels.
StarTimes - Mídia Angola has capital of 184 million kwanzas, of which 36.8 million, or 21%, is held by the Angolan side through Sociedade Angolana de Comunicações (SAC). SAC is controlled by Play Mídia and Privara Invest and is headed by Manuel Alberto Domingues and lawyer Óscar Esteves Lemos de Carvalho, according to Expansão.
Hantex Internacional is the main shareholder in the new television company and is presented as the Chinese partner in the operation. StarTimes - Mídia Angola is headed by Jiang Yifeng and will be able to operate terrestrial, satellite and cable pay-TV services as well as streaming offers, according to the register consulted by Expansão.
The relationship between Manuel Alberto Domingues and StarTimes already exists in content distribution: the AfroMusic Channel has featured for several years in StarTimes packages in some African countries. StarTimes has operated in more than 30 African countries since 2008, according to Expansão.
