The revamped Showmax is projected to become Africa’s second-largest video-on-demand (VOD) platform

MultiChoice’s newly revamped Showmax video streaming service has announced its ambition to become the top platform across Africa. However, research paints a slightly different picture for the service’s future position.

Digital TV Research’s projections suggest that the updated Showmax will occupy the second spot among Africa’s video streaming companies within five years. The report estimates that the number of paid subscription video-on-demand (SVOD) subscribers across Sub-Saharan Africa will more than double, rising from seven million at the end of 2023 to 16 million by 2029.

The research shows that Netflix is expected to retain its position as the market leader in the SVOD sector, boasting nearly 6.9 million subscribers by 2029. Meanwhile, Showmax is predicted to emerge as the subsequent largest streaming platform with an estimated 3.7 million paying subscribers. Despite not being projected to achieve its goal of leading the market, being the second-major platform in such a booming industry would still represent significant progress for Showmax.

Amazon Prime Video is forecasted to secure the third place in Sub-Saharan Africa’s video streaming market, with nearly 2.97 million subscribers by 2029. On the other hand, Disney+, whose rollout is expected to be limited to South Africa, will likely only have 905,000 subscriptions by 2029, according to the research firm.

In the battle for SVOD, the major players are Netflix and the regional contender Showmax, says Simon Murray, Principal Analyst at Digital TV Research. Showmax, backed by a rich catalogue of local content and sports rights, and now granted access to content from NBCUniversal, Sony Pictures and HBO, is in a strong position. It’s worth noting that MultiChoice, Showmax’s parent company, recently declined a purchase proposal from Canal Plus.

South Africa and Nigeria will contribute 59% (9.4 million) of the total number of SVOD subscriptions in the region, according to Digital TV Research. However, they also note that SVOD penetration will still be low by 2029, with only 7.1% of TV households paying for at least one subscription, though this has increased from 4.7% by the end of 2023.

The new report follows the recent relaunch by video entertainment corporation MultiChoice of its Showmax platform, now known as Showmax 2.0. MultiChoice group CEO Calvo Mawela expressed his belief to ITWeb that the updated streaming service could potentially generate revenue of $1 billion over the next five years.

In March, MultiChoice teamed up with Comcast’s NBCUniversal and Sky to initiate a streaming service specifically aimed at the African continent. Through this partnership, Showmax aims to directly rival U.S. based streaming giant, Netflix.

In an agreement struck with NBCUniversal, MultiChoice will hold a 70% stake in the new Showmax Group while the remaining 30% will be with NBCUniversal. In Nigeria, NBCUniversal will have an indirect 23.7% stake in the local subsidiary.

Recently, the company introduced its revamped video streaming service to the media industry. During this event, MultiChoice South Africa’s CEO, Marc Jury, expressed that Showmax aims to become the top streaming platform in Africa over time. Jury has been leading Showmax during its search for a new head following the departure of its previous leader, Yolisa Phahle, in September 2023.

As part of the relaunch, Showmax is utilising a new technical platform from streaming service Peacock. This platform, active in over 70 countries, accommodates both live and on-demand content, a feature incorporated by Showmax.

During the migration process of customers to Peacock’s platform from January 23 to February 12, Showmax faced some challenges but succeeded in completing the transition, as reported by Jury. He emphasised Showmax’s unique strength in localising content and payment methods, which he believes will set them apart from other African streaming platforms and aid in achieving their goal of becoming the leading streaming platform.

Showmax’s latest avatar comes with a new application, a revamped look, updated content, and its most attractive feature – a standalone mobile plan for the English Premier League. Broadcast in 212 territories, the Premier League reaches 643 million homes and garners a potential TV audience of 4.7 billion people.

In a partnership with MTN, Showmax aims to offer three new bundled services to South African consumers. This includes a Showmax Premier League standalone mobile plan showcasing all 380 games live for R69 a month, an entertainment plan on mobile for R39 a month at the project’s launch, and the multi-device Showmax Entertainment plan dropping from R99 to R89 per month. The bundled offering of Showmax Premier League and general Showmax Entertainment will be offered to customers for R99 a month.