by Thinus Ferreira
In February 2024 MultiChoice's video streaming service Showmax will change its look and subscription plans for the third time in its eight-year existence when the logo will switch to red with a British football-only plan that's likely a harbinger of what's to come for SuperSport on DStv.
In February 2024 MultiChoice will take the wrapping of its retooled Showmax that will switch to a red letter logo and retire its standard Showmax and Showmax Pro plans for Showmax Entertainment, Showmax Entertainment Mobile and Showmax Premier League plans as the streamer narrows its accessibility to Africa only.
Pricing has not yet been announced for the reconstructed Showmax done on the tech framework of the Peacock streaming service and in partnership with Comcast's NBCUniversal and Britain's Sky.
From February 2024 the remade red letter Showmax will have to show its mettle in South Africa and across the pan-African continent in a fierce fight against global streamers like Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Disney+, Apple TV+ and the still-to-launch Paramount+.
In a bizarre and as yet explained split, Showmax subscribers won't be able to get general entertainment content and English Premier League (EPL) live matches together, or both content selections in high definition (HD).
MultiChoice is forcing Showmax subscribers to choose: either Showmax Entertainment in HD from February 2024 without EPL live matches and extra EPL content, or the Showmax Premier League package in SD with EPL live matches and extra EPL content but without any general entertainment like series, movies, kids content or documentaries.
Showmax Entertainment Mobile will undoubtedly be cheaper than the full suite of Showmax Entertainment, but be in SD only, and won't allow subscribers streaming through Smart TVs and laptops.
Showmax Entertainment Mobile will also offer just one concurrent stream (Showmax Entertainment will offer two concurrent streams).
MultiChoice says "Showmax Premier League is the first standalone Premier League mobile streaming service ever to launch in Africa and will take every single match of the world's most popular football league to every corner of sub-Saharan Africa".
The split-off of EPL content as a streaming package will be an interesting experiment for MultiChoice which has steadfastly refused to ever offer its SuperSport content as a stand-alone package on traditional satellite pay-TV in direct-to-home (DTH), bundling sport on all of its satellite TV packages with general entertainment, news and kids TV channels.
Besides no general entertainment the Showmax Premier League package will be further curtailed and also not allow viewing on Smart TVs and laptop - a drawback for fans who like to watch matches live and on as big screens as possible. The maximum resolution will be SD.
"We can't wait to share the new Showmax,” says Marc Jury, Showmax CEO, in a prepared statement.
"We have an incredibly powerful new technology platform, a bold brand that truly represents our driving spirit and a content slate that is unmatched. No other streaming service in Africa can offer what Showmax is bringing to the table in the new year."
"Streaming in Africa is about to take off and we're ready to change the game. We have all the ingredients in place to become the number one streaming service for Africa," Jury says.
According to MultChoice Showmax’s migration to the Peacock streaming platform "means it’s ready to scale, and scale fast".
"The robust platform is used across the globe and is a leader in sports streaming, having successfully live-streamed the Super Bowl to more than six million users simultaneously."
Showmax has been ramping up content creation for the streamer's relaunch.
MultiChoice says international titles on Showmax will see a radical increase from 2024 as the streamer continues to draw from the content vaults of studios and distributors ranging from Banijay, BBC, eOne Fremantle, HBO, ITV, Lionsgate, Paramount, Sony, Warner Bros. Discovery and more.
