by Thinus Ferreira
South Africa's overcrowded video streaming space just got another service with the parastatal signal distributor Sentech which launched Freevision Play on Wednesday.
Freevision Play joins a litany of available local and international video streaming services in South Africa which already saw a shake-out that saw market entrants like Altech Node, PCCW's OnTAPTV, Cell C's Black, Telkom ONE, Vodacom's Video Play, Acorn TV and the BBC's BritBox shutter.
Freevision Play will now try and compete in South Africa against MultiChoice and Comcast NBCUniversal's relaunched Showmax, Netflix, Disney+, Amazon Prime Video, AppleTV+, the public broadcaster's SABC+ and eMedia's eVOD.
Smaller players like PCCW Media's VIU, Jou Afrikaans, Marquee TV, AfriForumTV, PrideTV and CineMagic also exist and are trying to sign up subscribers.
On Wednesday when the service made its debut, Freevision Play at freevisionplay.co.za carried no SABC TV channels but had the community TV channels Cape Town TV (CTV), 1KZN TV, Soweto TV, Tshwane TV, Faith TV and South Africa's government-funded BRICS Africa Channel.
Radio channels like Vuma FM, Engcobo FM, Moutse FM, Pheli FM, Mohodi FM, Waterberg Wave Radio and Ekhephini Community Radio are also available but no SABC radio stations.
Freevision Play is free and available online, as well as an app for major smartphone operating systems with Sentech noting that it can be "acccessed via smartphones, tablets, and smart TVs".
Sentech says Freevision Play is "a groundbreaking over-the-top (OTT)
video streaming platform designed to provide seamless and free access to a wide
array of local and community TV and radio channels".
Sentech isn't disclosing how much it cost and what it spent to create Freevision Play as a late OTT entrant but says it is "part of our ongoing
commitment to digital transformation and enhancing connectivity" to "bridge the digital divide by offering rich, diverse content to all
South Africans".
According to the signal distributor, Freevision Play "offers broadcasters an innovative solution to reach a broader audience without the high
costs associated with creating and maintaining their own OTT platforms and the
challenge of aggregating audiences".
"By joining Freevision Play, broadcasters
can expand their viewership, engage with their audience more effectively, and
generate additional revenue through advertising. Freevision Play takes care of
the upfront investment costs. It creates a multitenant platform, giving viewers
and listeners a diverse range of choices while providing broadcasters with new
audiences and viewers."
Sentech says Freevision Play has "a wide range of live TV and radio
channels along with on-demand content" and features Free Ad-Supported Streaming
Television (FAST) channels.
According to Kopano Thage, Sentech's executive for media business "The
launch of Freevision Play marks a significant milestone in Sentech's journey of
addressing universal access to towards enhancing digital connectivity and
content accessibility in South Africa".
"By providing free, high-quality content
to all South Africans, we are not only bridging the digital divide but also
empowering our communities with information and entertainment. We are excited
to see how Freevision Play will transform the way people engage with media and
support the growth of local broadcasters."
