 | |
| StarSat TopTV (previously) | |
| Company type | Public |
| Industry | Satellite television |
| Founded | 1 May 2010; 15 years ago (2010-05-01) |
| Defunct | 2 October 2024; 12 months ago (2024-10-02)[1] |
| Headquarters | Block C, Riverview Office Park, Halfway Gardens x, 100 Bekker Road,, |
| Products | Direct broadcast satellite,Pay-TV |
| Parent | StarTimes |
| Website | www |
StarSat (formerlyTopTV until 31 October 2013[2]) was a South Africandirect broadcast satellite television service that began broadcasting on 1 May 2010.[3] StarSat was operated byOn Digital Media,[4] who were granted a pay-TV license byICASA in September 2007.[5] On Digital Media is currently 20% owned by Luxembourgish satellite operatorSES and 20% owned by Chinese companyStarTimes.[6] StarSat's service was aimed at the LSM 6-9 demographic, targeting middle class viewers.
On Digital Media (Pty) Ltd launched TopTV on 1 May 2010.[3]
On 30 April 2013, shareholders of On Digital Media voted to approve China-based companyStarTimes taking over a 20% share of ODM. By doing so, StarTimes effectively acquired a 65% economic interest in ODM.[6] The vote also included adoption of a business rescue plan.[2]
TopTV was officially rebranded as StarSat on 31 October 2013.[2] The new packages and channels associated with the new brand were made available on 1 December 2013.[2][7]
When Starsat's broadcasting licence expired on 8 July 2024, with Starsat having failed to submit an application to renew its licence, the regulator, the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (ICASA) gave StarSat until 18 September to shut its services down and to advise its customers and suppliers accordingly.[8]
On 2 October 2024, when Starsat ignored this deadline, ICASA and law enforcement officials raided the StarSat premises and confiscated the broadcaster's broadcasting equipment.[1]
The matters remains unresolved, with the broadcaster having promised to challenge the action in court, but ICASA spokesperson Zanele Ntuli stating that the regulator was unaware of official filings.[9][needs update]
StarSat services were broadcast via satellite, using theSES-5 satellite at the5° east orbital position, and 3 of the six 36 MHz transponders in the "Sub Saharan Africa Ku-band" beam providing coverage of the whole sub-Saharan Africa region.[10] Transmissions were in theDVB-S2MPEG-4 digital TV format with reception using a simpleset-top box and with the Combo3PVR decoder launched in 2011.
Conax was used asconditional access system.
Channels from the Satellite DTH consisted of seven packages Smart and Super and Special and Global and French and Indian and Chinese.[11]
| Channel Name | Channel Number |
|---|---|
| ST GUIDE FRENCH | 002 |
| ST GUIDE ENGLISH | 99 |
| ST MOVIES PLUS | 100 |
| ST MOVIES | 101 |
| ST NOLLYWOOD PLUS | 102 |
| ST RISE | 120 |
| ST NOVELA E W | 127 |
| ST NOVELA E | 127 |
| ST NOVELA E PLUS | 128 |
| ST ZONE | 129 |
| ST SINO DRAMA | 130 |
| ST KUNGFU | 155 |
| ST REMBO PLUS | 166 |
| ST NOLLYWOOD | 131 |
| ST SPORTS FOCUS | 240 |
| ST SPORTS ARENA | 241 |
| ST SPORTS LIFE | 243 |
| ST BETA SPORTS | 244 |
| ST WORLD FOOTBALL | 245 |
| ST SPORTS PREMIUM | 246 |
| ST ADEPA | 247 |
| ST KIDS | 300 |
| ST TOONS | 310 |
| ST KIDS PLUS | 311 |
| ST RnB | 321 |
| ST KASI MUSIC | 322 |
| ST NAIJA | 324 |
| ST GOSPEL | 360 |
| ST SWAHILI | 400 |
| ST BONGO | 401 |
| ST SWAHILI PLUS | 402 |
| ST DADIN KOWA | 404 |
| ST YORÙBÁ | 412 |
| ST GANZA | 460 |
| ST REMBO | 484 |
| ST MAKULA | 492 |
| ST MAKULA KIKA | 493 |
| ST AM'MOBI | 527 |
| ST AFRIK | 612 |
| ST NOVELA F PLUS | 615 |
| ST NOLLYWOOD F | 616 |
| ST NOVELA F | 617 |
| ST CHINESE HOMELAND | 800 |
| ST NOVELA P | 881 |
| ST MANIA | 957 |
Companies based inGreater Johannesburg | |||
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| Diversified conglomerates | |||
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| Retail and marketing | |||
| Restaurant franchises | |||
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| State-owned enterprises | |||
