Kwese TV has suspended broadcasting in Zimbabwe following an appeal to the Supreme Court by the Broadcasting Authority of Zimbabwe (BAZ) challenging the initial High Court ruling which had ruled in favour of Dr Dish, the official distributor of the private broadcaster.
This comes after the company had announced last week that it had signed up more than 25 000 subscribers in a few days after it started selling its products. In a statement yesterday, Kwese TV, a member of Econet Group of Companies said it has temporarily suspended its services in Zimbabwe.
“We would like to inform you that the broadcasting of the Kwese TV Services has been temporarily suspended following an appeal to the Supreme Court by the Broadcasting Authority of Zimbabwe (BAZ). This appeal challenged the ruling which was issued in favour of Kwese TV by the High Court last week,” the company said.
Kwese TV has since approached the High Court for permission to allow them to broadcast while they are waiting for their case to commence in the Supreme Court.
“We have approached the High Court on an urgent basis for permission to continue broadcasting pending the determination of the appeal in the High Court. We will update you as soon as the judgment is handed down. We sincerely regret this inconvenience, which is outside of our control,” read part of the statement.
The company however, promised to reimburse anyone who had purchased decoders and need repayment.
“In the meantime, we are happy to make a refund to you at any point in time, should you so wish. You can however, keep your installed decoder and equipment until the ruling is issued,” reads the statement.
In an earlier statement, BAZ chief executive officer, Mr Obert Muganyura had warned the public from purchasing the TV station’s apparatus.
“BAZ, therefore, wishes to advise the public not to invest in a service that cannot be provided without a licence and warns anyone who may contemplate providing an unlicensed broadcasting service to acquaint themselves with the course of action that the authority is bound to take in terms of the law,” said Mr Maganyura.
