Kwesé TV Founder and Serieal Entrepreneur Steve Masiyiwa has revealed that a signal carrier in Zambia has rejected his company’s offer to broadcast World Cup matches in Zambia for free.
Responding to a question from a football fan in Zambia on Facebook who asked why Zambia and Sierra Leone are not benefiting from the provision of free World Cup matches on Kwesé, Mr Masiyiwa who is founder and Group Chairman of Econet Wireless which owns Kwesé said his offer was rejected in Zambia.
“Sadly in Zambia, the signal management has been put in the hands of a competitor, and even though we have a license to broadcast KFS (free tv channel for sport), that competitor (a Chinese company) has repeatedly frustrated efforts for the free channel to be available in Zambia,” he said.
Mr Masiyiwa revealed that his company was even considering taking the matter to court.
“We even considered going to court over the issue, but in the end we just decided that Zambians themselves (who love soccer) will realize how they are being prejudiced and take necessary actions,” he said.
“Zambia was the first country where we set up Kwesé Free Sports Channel because of its amazing interest in soccer, but one day we were just switched off, just like that and it was done by a competitor!”
[pullquote]I cannot imagine how such a soccer loving country can be forced to watch the World Cup finals using Pay TV decoders only! Remember the poor who cannot afford payTv decoders.[/pullquote]
He added, “You can still buy a decoder as our Pay Tv Service is operating. We offered the free broadcast to ZNBC, and they declined. It is now too late for us to give them the feed because we are now focused on the games themselves.”
“I cannot imagine how such a soccer loving country can be forced to watch the World Cup finals using Pay TV decoders only! Remember the poor who cannot afford payTv decoders.”
He said ,”At least the FREE KFS service is available in all countries except Zambia and Sierra Leone. I love Zambia as you know, because I lived there as a child, and it hurt me that this was allowed to happen. We must always try and help those who cannot afford.”
Mr Masiyiwa recently announced that his company had obtained rights to broadcast the World Cup games on “Kwesé Free Sports” (KFS).
“We have now managed to make arrangements for “Kwesé Free Sports” (KFS) to broadcast 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia™? in virtually every single country in Sub-Saharan Africa. We are either broadcasting directly or through a local Free-To-Air broadcaster. (Whenever you watch the Kwesé broadcasts, look for the logo “KFS” at the top of your screen).”
He said this is the first time in history that one company has broadcast the FIFA World Cup across Africa for free.
“We will broadcast 32 matches for free including the Final. We are expecting to reach audiences of more than 300m for some of the matches, the largest sports audience in Africa, ever! Our other channel, KS1, which is available on Kwesé TV, the Set Top Box will show all 64 games.”
Let hear the Dununa reverse songs in Lusaka and Copperbelt. Keekekekekeke.
Local is laka. ZNBC will beam live all the matches
Kwese TV is acting like a btch
How can you say ZNBC is the best when you have never seen Kwesé TV??
One Zed you a such an 1diot! Is that the signal you can be proud of. watching a signal as if it is heavily raining. Muleyenda ba kolwe imwee. This PF government has done a lot of injustices to the people since coming into power and i don’t think anyone who has traveled and seen true democracies can support the semiliterate 1diots in power. Lungu your days are numbered!
Kaputo Davies – Nevermind them… let him admire Shopping Malls as development yet he can not afford to buy anything in them…They have been shortchanged by thieves and they are dancing like they did them a favour.
You mean that Kwese TV is acting like a Mulenga SATA?
Steve Masiyiwa the Zimbabwean billionaire and Telecoms entrepreneur…this man is an inspiration, these guys had to fight for what he has as Uncle Bob wanted to destroy him back in the day that he fled to America.
These are what you call businessmen…Steve Masiyiwa please forget the Zambians the sold their souls to the Chinks …as per the principles of FIFA WC matches are supposed to on mainstream channels even BBC shows it in the UK….docile Zambians will pay heavily for tolerating corrupt leaders.
Are you taking a shot at your HH? Dangote and Steve Masiyiwa have done it for Africa whilst your HH is busy standing on platforms in the UK & SA taking ill of his country .GBM is busy banting like Rick Rozay. At least Tony Irwin has Proflight and Zambeef.Miss ugly Nkandu Luo has school of Witchcraft and Engineering at UNZA.
Just sit down and zip it silly toddler…am talking about billionaires here not spewing nonsense like a broken sewer pipe.
Now crawl back in your little pram and behave!!
Stupid Gay Gay b!tch who wanks in the cow kraal.And how did you manage to break my sewer pipe? Well this time you aint drilling but tongue licking it for 90 minutes.You must be the dumbest cowdung in the city of Ingo’mbe Illede to look down his god HH and his counterpart Great Bag Of Maize as domiciles
Dept of HaNegatives from HaTribes wing of Hatribal Hogarnisation.
Smelly sharon Has ha period hagain ?
Period pains are bad. Sharon take some medication.
Please, please, please, help this person. This is not being normal. They urgently need a psychiatrist. This incoherence and hate could be signs of something to do with their mental state.
He is online 24/7 spilling hate from Hatribal Horganization!
Something that is free by FIFA law to the rest of the world , the corrupt theives of PF let the Chinese sell it to the Zambians ….then you have the equally du.ll corrupt cader supporters singing ati development ?
You dum foo.ls the world cup is supposed to be a free to air event as mandated by FIFA ….
Vamahala vinata. ….who says it’s from FIFA? If so get straight from Fifa for free because the one licensed for the signal is paying for it…it’s not free unless the signal is given for free. No Upnd or PF here. Let Fifa pay the owners of the signal on behalf of Kwese.
You why should fifa pay anything when they are providing a free to air service ?
Why is the world cup free to air in almost every country ?
The distributors are supposed to make money by charging for advertisements during the world cup…..not charging customers to watch what is supposed to be a free to air programme….
Only in Zambia Vamahala vinata as the Chinese with the corrupt theifs in PF see to it that Zambians pay….
You are assuming advertising will offset the costs incurred. Very poor logic. Anyway I can’t reason with you because you only see a snake in PF camp. Besides I have yet to see a Zambian complaining because everyone is watching the first match almost for free. This Kwese must just Kwese itself.
But that is the model adopted by every other country in the world….and it works in every other country..
is it normal for you to pay for a service that is being provided for free to the entire world! You must be very sick in your head. Which planet are you living on, you cheap drectionless gullible PF cadres. You support even feces for as long as it is PF. Muli mbwaa.
PF are letting the Chinese eat the Zambians alive with these ripoff payments…
If Znbc is showing the games free, whats the problem with kwese? From the look of things Kwese wants to market his decoders thinking Zambians are dial. waloba ilyauma…!!!b
Sorry I ment to say dile nd not dial.
Spaka and company, do you know that to be connected to Kwese you have to pay a subscription fee? So if Kwese gets a free signal who’s benefitting, the viewer or the Kwese management? Instead of bringing in politics first local at the issue in full. Subscribers to Zuku, Dstv, Gotv, Top Star, Kwese all pay for viewing so what Zambian is this person talking about?