Two prominent figures in global business are directing substantial investments into the media and broadcasting industry. Tech entrepreneur Elon Musk has invested approximately $1bn in American media giant Skydance, while Ylias Akbaraly, widely regarded as Madagascar’s richest man, is pursuing a $450m contract to modernise Nigeria’s public broadcasting infrastructure.
In the United States, Elon Musk, the world’s richest man, has invested about $1bn in media company Skydance, led by David Ellison.
Reports by Semafor and the New York Post indicate that the investment deepens Musk’s financial ties with the Ellison family.
In 2022, Larry Ellison, Oracle’s co-founder and David Ellison’s father, contributed $1bn to help finance Musk’s acquisition of Twitter.
Musk’s latest investment comes after Skydance’s takeover of Warner Bros. Discovery on October 6, bringing major entertainment and media brands, including CBS, CNN, HBO, Paramount+ and Warner Bros., under its portfolio.
However, the combined company faces a debt burden of approximately $82.5bn. To streamline operations and reduce its financial obligations, Skydance’s management is targeting $6bn in annualised cost savings over three years while integrating artificial intelligence into production.
In Africa, Madagascar’s richest man, Ylias Akbaraly, is leading an effort to modernise Nigeria’s public television and radio broadcasting infrastructure.
His company, Redland, owns French broadcasting technology firm Thomson Broadcast, which is seeking to secure a $450m (€400m) contract with the Nigerian government.
According to reports by Nairametrics and Africa Intelligence, the proposed modernisation project will target major state-owned media organisations, including the Nigerian Television Authority, the Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria, Voice of Nigeria and the National Broadcasting Commission.
Thomson Broadcast Chief Executive Officer Stéphane Bollon has held discussions with Nigeria’s Minister of Information, Mohammed Idris, following the signing of a preliminary memorandum of understanding in 2025.
The proposed expansion marks another step in Akbaraly’s business growth.
He transformed his family’s detergent business in Madagascar into a diversified conglomerate with interests spanning finance, aviation, real estate and telecommunications.
Thomson Broadcast has previously undertaken broadcasting infrastructure upgrades in countries such as Guinea and Mali.
Securing the Nigerian contract would represent one of the company’s largest media technology modernisation projects on the African continent.
