RT blackout due to feed being cut by distributor in Europe: MultiChoice

MultiChoice has reaffirmed that EU-imposed sanctions are why it cannot broadcast the Russian state-owned TV channel RT on DStv.

The council of the European Union on Wednesday suspended the distribution of RT and Sputnik broadcasts across its member states, saying they were instrumental in bringing forward and supporting Russia's aggression against Ukraine. The decision also shut down the RT channel in SA.

"We want to reaffirm that we cannot continue to broadcast RT on DStv for reasons outside of our control." the company said in a statement.

"The global distributor of the channel (who are based in Europe) stopped providing the broadcast feed to all its suppliers, including MultiChoice, because of the sanctions imposed on Russia by the European Union.

"Our role as a broadcaster is to provide a platform for diverse news channels. Our aim is to enable our subscribers to select channels they wish to view. We do not have editorial control over the content of 'third party' channels, nor do we endorse any points of view."

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