MultiChoice, a South African supplier of pay-TV programming to 44 countries in Africa and adjacent islands, has leased three transponders on Eutelsat’s W4 satellite, which went into service on July 1 at 36 degreesE.

Furthermore, MultiChoice plans to lease four more transponders, Eutelsat said.

Twelve of the 31 transponders on the W4 satellite are dedicated to the African market via a fixed beam the covers countries in sub-Saharan Africa and a steerable beam pointed over West Africa.

“As the first satellite operator to service sub-Saharan Africa with Ku-band capacity, Eutelsat made MultiChoice a compelling offer with its new W4 satellite,” said Ian Tennant, chief executive of MultiChoice.

“In addition to covering our existing markets, W4 opens up new commercial opportunities for us in West Africa and the Indian Ocean islands,” he added. “The MultiChoice Group already enjoys a successful working relationship with Eutelsat in Greece with our Nova platform and is happy to take this relationship further with the African market.”