MultiChoice’s Showmax to discontinue services outside Africa

MultiChoice’s popular subscription on-demand video streaming service, Showmax, will no longer be available outside Africa starting Dec. 1, 2023, the company has announced in a notice on its website.

The news comes days after announcing that its streaming platform, Showmax Pro will be phased out by November 30, 2023, as part of a larger effort to revamp Showmax. Showmax Pro stopped being available for new subscribers as of October 1.

Existing Showmax Pro subscribers will be transitioned to DSTV Stream, Multichoice’s new online streaming platform that does not require a dish or decoder.

Speaking on the discontinuation of their services outside of Africa, Showmax stated via a statement sent to customers, “For the moment, we will be focused specifically on the African market and on meeting the needs of our growing customer communities across the dynamic continent.”

Multichoice has partnered with American entertainment conglomerate, NBCUniversal and British media house, Sky Group, to become Africa’s leading streaming service. NBCUniversal currently holds a 30% stake in Showmax.

As part of its partnership with NBCUniversal and Sky Group, Showmax will be debuting a new and improved version of its service, Showmax 2.0 later in the year or early 2024.

Showmax 2.0 will contain a blend of Showmax originals, international content from Sky, NBCUniversal, HBO, Warner Brothers, and Sony, and Multichoice’s locally produced stations such as Africa Magic, Mzansi Magic, and Maisha Magic.

Also, subscribers will have access to more live sports such as the English Premier League. The platform’s live sports streaming service will be improved following the relaunch.