French broadcast company Canal+ has made an offer to purchase South Africa's MultiChoice, Africa's largest provider of subscription TV services, which include DStv.

Canal+ is already a majority shareholder in MultiChoice and has a 30% stake.

The company is proposing to buy the remaining shares for 31.7 billion rand ($1.6bn, £1.3bn).

Canal+ currently has more than seven million subscribers across 25 African countries and is the leading TV operator in French-speaking Africa.

MultiChoice has been struggling in recent years, with its main product, DStv, losing thousands of subscribers, amid increased competition from streaming services.

Canal+ has said that its acquisition of the South African company promises to turn around its fortunes by creating "a group with significant scale, putting MultiChoice on a secure long-term path and enabling the company to thrive".

However, it added that the progression of the purchase is still uncertain "at this stage".