The MultiChoice Group has announced that its subsidiary streaming entity, Showmax, will soon shut down operations.
The closure of the decade-old streaming platform will make way for MultiChoice to introduce another “in-house large-scale” streaming channel that the group believes will cater to both African and international consumers.
This decision, which comes after Canal+ took control of MultiChoice late last year, suggests that the French media multinational is focusing on efficiencies to streamline operations for the business to remain profitable.
The retirement of Showmax is not expected to have any impact on job security as employees will be transitioned into various options.
Operational challenges
The group revealed in its annual financial results for the year ended March 2025 that organic trading profit had dropped by 9% year on year due to increased operating costs in Showmax in its peak investment year.
According to these financial results, the group managed to return to a positive equity position by cutting costs, benefiting from more stable currencies, and recording an accounting gain after selling 60% of its stake in its insurance business (NMSIS) to Sanlam.
The long game
MultiChoice said on Thursday that the Showmax board had taken the decision to close down in order to improve financial discipline and make better use of investment in a global streaming market that is becoming more competitive and requires significant capital.
“The substantial annual losses experienced by the Showmax business have proved unsustainable. The decision to phase out Showmax reflects our focus on building a sustainable, competitive business for the long term in an increasingly demanding global streaming environment.
“Further details regarding our expanded content offering and platform upgrades will be shared in due course. We want to reassure our Showmax subscribers that they are our priority as we evolve our services to deliver a superior streaming experience,” said MultiChoice.
Communication has also been shared with Showmax subscribers that the streaming platform will be discontinued, without giving timelines.
“The decision reflects our focus on strengthening our overall digital offering and ensuring long-term sustainability in an increasingly competitive streaming environment,” said Showmax.
