StarTimes says its subscribers in Africa hit 2,5 million early in June. The Chinese media company now has its sights set on its next big target: sub-Saharan Africa and in particular South Africa.
South Africa represents the African continent's biggest, most sophisticated, and most lucrative pay-TV market where MultiChoice's DStv service has held sway. StarTimes said in April it plans to "rattle" South Africa's pay-TV market.
StarTimes secured a "backdoor" entrance into this market through the TopTV "takeover" in a country where pay-TV licences has been scarce and where most consortiums who've been issued licences have failed the past few years to start actual commercial pay-TV services.
"There are about 11 million households in South Africa with TV sets. About 4 million are subscribers to pay-TV. There exists a tremendous potential to develop the pay-TV base in South Africa," StarTimes said in April in its TopTV bid application filing.
StarTimes first entered Africa in 2002 and got its first TV broadcasting licence in 2007 in Rwanda. StarTimes has since grown its African footprint and is has licences and registered companies in 10 African nations. StarTimes is doing business in Nigeria, Tanzania, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, the Central African Republic, Guinea, Kenya and soon also in South Africa.
StarTimes in in its comprehensive bail-out plan of TopTV - which was approved - said it wants to slash TopTV's monthly subscription fee by about half, change the content radically as well as the way channel packages are grouped and also wants to install it's own CEO at TopTV who will be someone who's been working for StarTimes.
Since the StarTimes bid was accepted by TopTV shareholders, the business plan's proposals are what's likely coming soon to TopTV's pay-TV business in South Africa.
Pang Xinxing, chairman of the Beijing-based StarTimes now says their goal is "to provide every African family with affordable and enjoyable digital television".
Pang Xinxing, says technology and financing projects are critically needed in African countries to help with the popularisation of satellite television projects. He said StarTimes is injecting "hefty capital" to secure "richer content" for pay-TV subscribers in Africa.
