Weekly DSTV Subscription In Test Phase

MultiChoice, the owner of DStv, has begun testing weekly subscriptions in Uganda; if the experiment is successful, it will expand to other regions.

Calvo Mawela, CEO of MultiChoice Group, told the Sunday Times that the business launched the weekly subscriptions seven weeks ago and, in three to six months, it should have a solid understanding of the trial’s performance.

The goal of the trial is to better match consumers’ financial flows with subscription periods. MultiChoice will think about providing weekly subscriptions in other areas if it is successful.

Mawela stated, “It’s a big change, and we think that offering people weekly passes will help when they are struggling — as we have seen — in the same way cell phone prepaid has changed the mobile industry.”

Mawela responded that MultiChoice still doesn’t think such a structure will work when asked about providing a bundle that allows users to select their own channels.

He did, however, add that the business was looking into a solution that would allow clients to purchase a base product and then add channels to it.

Mawela’s comments come after MultiChoice announced an R2.02 billion (approximately 111.7 Million USD) net profit for the year that ended on March 31, 2025.

Compared to the R2.52 billion (approximately 114.4 Million USD) loss it declared as of March 31, 2024, this constituted a swing of R4.54 billion (approximately 226.2 Million USD).

The selling of MultiChoice’s 60% share in its insurance company to Sanlam in late November 2024 is mostly to blame for the volatility.

The group claimed that an 11% drop in subscription sales was the cause of its 9% year-over-year revenue decline during that time.

It should be mentioned that as of March 31, 2025, MultiChoice South Africa’s revenue was R41.73 billion (approximately 2.29 Billion USD), a modest increase over the previous year. But its activities in Showmax and Rest of Africa suffered greatly.

MultiChoice offers weekly subscriptions in an effort to better retain clients in important markets.

Its 2024–2025 fiscal year data showed drops in both the total number of members and 90-day active subscribers.

As of March 31, 2025, there were 14.51 million subscribers, an 8% decrease from the 15.69 million as of March 31, 2024. During that time, 90-day active subscribers fell by 11% to 18.59 million.

With 14.5 million active subscribers, linear subscribers fell 1.2 million or 8% year over year. The loss was split equally between South Africa (0.6 million) and the rest of Africa (0.6 million), according to the MultiChoice Group.

“This shows continued widespread pressure across the group’s entire customer base, even though it represents an improvement over FY24 trends.”

As part of a comprehensive evaluation to adapt to shifting consumer tastes, MultiChoice is thinking about separating its SuperSport lineup from other DStv channels.

It claimed to have stepped up its investigation into possible modifications to the channel makeup of its DStv packages.

It told MyBroadband, “This includes examining whether certain bundled elements, like SuperSport and General Entertainment, could be offered differently in the future.”

It did, however, point out that the project is still in its infancy and that its customer value and business impact are still being evaluated.

The details of any possible model, such as whether modifications would be optional or how pricing may be set up, cannot yet be discussed, according to MultiChoice.

“We are still dedicated to providing our customers with flexibility and value, and we will provide more updates as soon as there is significant progress to report.”

MultiChoice has previously contemplated dividing its DStv packages to provide sports channels independently.

Interest in DStv Flex, an entertainment pack of 67 channels that includes kids, news, general entertainment, and free-to-air channels, as well as the possibility of adding Sports Packs, was first assessed in September 2021.

Customers could opt to turn on and off Sport Pack subscriptions on a monthly basis, with only the main Entertainment Pack required.

They would be able to save money throughout their favourite sports’ off-seasons thanks to this.

MultiChoice stated in July 2024 that DStv Flex was one of several product concepts it had tested with consumers, but it also hinted that it was no longer looking into the product.