There is no doubt that DStv wants to win big in the on-demand streaming game in Africa. The company owns and operates two of Africa’s most popular streaming services – DStv Now and Showmax.
MultiChoice’s plan to bundle Netflix and Amazon Prime with DStv, DStv Now, and Showmax may, therefore, be seen as limiting competition in the region. The Competition Commission in South Africa is investigating this deal that seeks to integrate the streaming services into its DStv Explora decoder.
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The company CFO Tim Jabobs said they want to provide simplicity, choice, and convenience to subscribers, where they can come to one place and can get access to “all of this different content”.
Multichoice wants to make DStv a one-stop-shop where subscribers will pay one bill and get access to all streaming content, including Netflix, Amazon, Hulu, and YouTube. The company CEO Mawela said pay-TV operators like MultiChoice have always operated in a multi-channel environment where they purchase content from third-party providers. This third-party content is then aggregated into the company’s platform and sold to subscribers in the form of DStv bouquets. So the deal with Netflix and Amazon was an obvious step in their future streaming strategy.
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It should also be noted that Netflix is essentially a content provider, as are Amazon, Hulu, YouTube, and many others.
South Africa’s Competition Commission, has today confirmed that they are investigating MultiChoice’s bundling plans and agreements. They have however not provided further details about the investigation because it is currently at a “very sensitive stage”.
