White is the new black: MultiChoice's next DStv Explora Ultra will be white and likely voice-controlled

by Thinus Ferreira

MultiChoice decided to leak a first look of its next DStv Explora Ultra decoder which will be white - a first-ever in this colour - together with a brand new form factor for its top-end decoder that is another radical departure from previous versions.

The 4th generation DStv Explora Ultra also has a completely redesigned remote control, likely AI voice-controlled, similar to what overseas pay-TV operators have been offering their subscribers the past few years.

Taking its design cues from Sky in the United Kingdom's "Sky Q box" decoder, the new DStv Explora Ultra box doesn't have a market release date yet although it will be rolled out to consumers within months.

MultiChoice included the first look at its latest DStv Explora Ultra decoder in its 2024/2025 half-year financial results documentation for investors. MultiChoice declined to comment on various questions TVwithThinus asked last week about this to-be-released decoder.

The new DStv Explora Ulta decoder unveiling is similar to June 2020 when MultiChoice showed investors in its financial presentation that it was going to add both Netflix and Amazon Prime Video as third-party streaming apps to its DStv Explora Ultra, after which it later did so.

The next generation DStv Explora Ultra decoder will be the latest hardware release from MultiChoice and takes the place of the much-hyped DStv Glass - a customised version of Comcast's Sky Glass for South Africa that MultiChoice planned to release here but scuppered because of its worsening financial position.

Initially, Calvo Mawela, MultiChoice Group CEO in September 2022 announced that DStv Glass - a proprietary smart TV set with a built-in DStv decoder - would launch in South Africa in 2023. 

In May 2023 this was suddenly pushed out by two years.

In June this year Tim Jacobs, MultiChoice chief financial officer (CFO), told me that DStv Glass is dead - one of the victims of the financially stretched pay-TV operator's drastic cost-cutting measures coming as MultiChoice awaits an aggressive buy-out by France's Vivendi SE's Canal+ to help it fight against Netflix's streaming proliferation in Africa.

The latest DStv Explora Ultra decoder is inscribed with a Norman window design on top, a brand design flourish that MultiChoice adopted two years ago. 

The Norman window, in grey, also appears on the right of the decoder front-face and inside it, the word "DStv". 

The words "Ultra decoder" appear on the decoder front-face on the left.

The DStv Explora Ultra does away with the black plastic grate design in exchange for a smooth white plastic surface, a grey bottom-third base, and a thin grey trim around the top border. 

The decoder's form factor is a rectangle with rounded corners, very similar to the Sky Q box. 

Sky has what it calls a Sky Q Booster box, an extender to help with a better and amplified Wifi signal in the home. The new DStv Explora Ultra looks 90% similar to this white box. 

Sky New Zealand's latest new decoder box is now also white and also looks similar - and now also has a white remote control.

The new DStv Explora Ultra is the first white DStv decoder line ever from MultiChoice. 

MultiChoice's previous DStv decoders were black, its first PVR decoder line was metallic silver, and it also made one very rare, golden decoder. 

This 24-carat gold-plated M-Net decoder was made in 1993 to celebrate M-Net's millionth decoder and is part of MultiChoice's corporate museum.

Remote control with voice control

The new DStv Explora Ultra remote control represents a somewhat shocking and eye-popping departure from the "half-banana oval" black shape shipped with DStv decoders up until now, with the next generation remote control switching to white.

The new white remote control has a reduced number of buttons.

The white remote control is very much similar to the design of the Sky Q remote control - even having a dedicated blue button directly underneath the grey circle omni-directional arrows and "Enter" button.

On the Sky Q remote control this blue button is pressed to activate voice control AI and to give voice commands to the decoder like "Find Sky News", "Go to movies", "Tune to channel [channel number]", "What should I watch?",  "Open my recordings", "Take me to Catch Up" and multiple others.

Since MultiChoice and Comcast's Sky are Showmax 2.0 IT partners and worked on DStv Glass until its rollout was abruptly canned, it's clear that MultiChoice decided to go the Sky Q route with its next top-line decoder and remote control design.

While Sky Q has the functionality of pressing the "Q" button on the front-face of the decoder to find a lost remote control that will then beep for30 seconds, it doesn't look like this functionality will be included with the new DStv Explora Ultra that doesn't have a pressable button on the front-face.

Like the existing DStv Explora Ultra (its latest version in this range is 3B), the newest version will allow the recording of hundreds of hours of TV, give access to live linear and on-demand library content, as well as access to other video streaming services like Netflix, Disney+ and Amazon Prime Video.

In its latest half-year financial results MultiChoice said that DStv decoder sales increased 46%.

MultiChoice adds Disney+ to its DStv Explora Ultra.

by Thinus Ferreira

MultiChoice will add the Disney+ to DStv Explora Ultra decoders as a bundled service when The Walt Disney Company launches its video streaming service on 18 May in South Africa.

Disney+ will join Netflix SA and Amazon Prime Video which are already available on the DStv Explora Ultra as subscription video-on-demand (SVOD) apps. 

The Disney+ fold-in is similar to the American and British launch of the streamer that comes included on the traditional pay-TV offerings of US and UK pay-TV services like Comcast and Sky, with linear TV channels carried on the traditional pay-TV packages and Disney+ made available as an extra.

"DStv customers can enjoy the benefits of exclusive contract packages and bundle deals, bringing all their entertainment needs to one central place. The partnership with Disney+ leads with an expanded choice of content, ease and convenience of subscription and payment, with the DStv Explora Ultra as an enabler," Calvo Mawela, MultiChoice CEO, says in a statement.

"Our customers can enjoy their favourite shows and movies anywhere, anytime, on our world-class platforms. The digital world has brought with it fundamental shifts and our customers are looking for convenient access to a portfolio of entertainment options."

Christine Service, Walt Disney Company Africa senior vice president and general manager, says "This is yet another proud milestone in our partnership with the MultiChoice Group".

"We are delighted to be collaborating to bring South African DStv subscribers access to Disney+'s incredible catalogue of films, series and exclusive content."

MultiChoice adds YouTube as a video streaming app to its DStv Explora Ultra decoder.

by Thinus Ferreira

MultiChoice has added YouTube as another video streaming app to its DStv Explora Ultra decoder alongside Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Showmax and DStv BoxOffice.

Some of the world's biggest new subscription video-on-demand (SVOD) services like Disney+ and HBO Max remain unavailable, very likely due to existing multi-year content output deals that MultiChoice and M-Net have with The Walt Disney Company and WarnerMedia that will first have to expire.

The YouTube app can be accessed by selecting the Apps button on the DStv remote control.

"DStv subscribers can now watch YouTube, where every day people watch over a billion hours of video, including music videos, short and documentary films, live streams and video blogs," says Nyiko Shiburi, MultiChoice South Africa CEO.

"The addition of YouTube to the DStv Explora Ultra builds on DStv’s ambition to be a one-stop video entertainment hub, giving our customers more convenience and choice to access local and international content on a single device," says Nyiko Shiburi.

With the DStv Explora Ultra's Discovery And Launch protocol, viewers can play YouTube videos from a second device, for instance a smartphone, directly on a TV screen connected to the decoder, without any pairing process that is required.

MultiChoice says that "This makes it easier to watch shared or archived content from a secondary device of choice".

Alex Okosi, managing director for YouTube for emerging markets in Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA), says that "Joining DStv Explora Ultra will enable subscribers in sub-Saharan Africa, one of our fastest growing markets, to watch the millions of hours of amazing content from Africa and around the world on YouTube".

MultiChoice drops the DStv Explora Ultra decoder price, as well as decoder prices and subscription fees elsewhere in Africa, as 2021’s annual subscription hike looms for South African subscribers.

by Thinus Ferreira

After a month and a half on shelves, MultiChoice is dropping the price of its expensive new DStv Explora Ultra decoder in South Africa and also lowering decoder and monthly subscription fees across Africa, although the pay-TV operator's annual 2021 price hike for subscribers looms that will be announced later this month.

Specifically citing the debilitating economic impact that the global Covid-19 coronavirus pandemic has had on African consumers and saying it's cutting prices to help them, MultiChoice is lowering DStv and GOtv decoder prices, as well as monthly subscription fees in countries across sub-Saharan Africa.

MultiChoice Nigeria is cutting the price on decoders as well as certain subscription fees from 1 February, while MultiChoice Uganda has slashed the price of a GOtv decoder and subscription set by a whopping 23% from yesterday.

Martin Mabutho, MultiChoice Nigeria's chief customer officer, on Friday told the media in a virtual briefing that DStv is slashing decoder and subscription prices to try and lessen the economic impact of Covid-19 on customers and that it is a reflection of the pay-TV provider's commitment to making quality entertainment more accessible.

Jonah Wegoye, MultiChoice Uganda's head of sales, told the media that "The slow recovery rate of the country’s economy from the recession caused by the Covid-19 pandemic and the recently concluded election period has compelled us at MultiChoice Uganda to consider a price reduction in a bid to ease our customers' burden and cushion them against financial distress".

While MultiChoice is increasing DStv subscription fees in Angola from 4 February, it is slashing subscription fees in notable markets like Ghana, Kenya and Zambia as well, saying that "in the most challenging of times, our priority is to ensure everyone has access to the best viewing entertainment at a price they can afford".

While MultiChoice South Africa hasn't announced any subscription price cut it quietly lowered the price of its expensive new DStv Explora Ultra decoder.

MultiChoice launched the new DStv Explora Ultra decoder in mid-November 2020 and gives DStv subscribers who want to use it access to streaming services like Netflix SA, Amazon Prime Video and Showmax, with more subscription video-on-demand (SVOD) services that will be added over time.

MultiChoice launched the DStv Explora Ultra at a recommended retail price of R2 499 for just the decoder, and R3 699 when it includes installation. That compares to the DStv Explora 3 that can be bought for R999, or around R 1499 including installation.

MultiChoice told TVwithThinus in response to a media enquiry on Monday that it has now dropped the DStv Explora Ultra price by R200 - an indication that MultiChoice has now started subsidising this decoder.

"MultiChoice can confirm that the recommended retail price of the DStv Explora Ultra decoder has been adjusted with effect from 1 February 2021. The new recommended retail price is R2 299 for a standalone Explora Ultra, or R3 499 to have the new decoder installed".

When asked why the DStv Explora Ultra is so expensive, Calvo Mawela, MultiChoice CEO, during the company's investors' call for its financial results for the 6 months until the end of September 2020, said that "what we've decided to do with the DStv Explora Ultra decoder is not to introduce any subsidies as yet, and that is why you see the pricing, if you compare with others, it's a little bit out of sync with what you have seen in the past."   

Tim Jacobs, MultiChoice chief financial officer (CFO), said that the DStv Explora Ultra decoder is "really targeted at early-adopters and we think that the initial target market is the guys that want to experiment a little bit".

"But like all of our products, we'll start and then we'll look at the market demand and then make judgement calls about whether to introduce pricing differentials [subsidies] later. It's a good starting point to simply introduce the DStv Explora Ultra into the market."

With the ongoing economic impact of Covid-19 in South Africa that hasn't diminished and with the annual 2021 DStv subscription increase looming from April for South African consumers - always announced in February - MultiChoice was also asked if it's going to increase monthly subscription fees, if it would keep them the same to help South African subscribers, or would be staying unchanged for certain DStv packages.

"DStv will announce any subscription price adjustments to customers in due course," says MultiChoice.

After increasing prices in the United States in late-2020 and from February 2021 in the United Kingdom, TVwithThinus asked Netflix whether it intends to increase prices for Netflix South Africa subscribers in 2021. Netflix SA didn't respond to the media enquiry that was made on Monday.

ALSO READ: MultiChoice: Here's the 4 reasons why the new DStv Explora Ultra decoder that comes with built-in Netflix access is so expensive at R2499.

MultiChoice adds Amazon Prime Video to its carousel of video streaming services on its DStv Explora Ultra decoder, meaning DStv subscribers will be able to see 'the world's most expensive show'.

by Thinus Ferreira

As expected MultiChoice announced on Tuesday that it is adding Amazon Prime Video as a video streaming service to its latest DStv Explora Ultra decoder.

The addition of Amazon Prime Video comes after MultiChoice added Netflix SA to its new decoder box last month.

The addition of Amazon Prime Video to MultiChoice's carousel of subscription video-on-demand (SVOD) means that the pan-African pay-TV operator will be able to keep crucial "bragging rights" to new international content that has been in danger of slipping away as streamers are making shows for their own platforms that they are not making available through their usual international distribution channels.

MultiChoice will now, for instance, be able to claim that it will be able to offer "the world's most expensive show", the upcoming Lord of the Rings series currently filming in New Zealand, in partnership with Amazon Prime Video. Without Amazon Prime Video, DStv subscribers would not have been able to see this much-awaited production.

There is no word yet on whether MultiChoice has any plans to add Disney+, discovery+, HBO Max, Paramount+ or any of the other flurry of international streaming services not yet available in South Africa.

"We are excited to add Amazon Prime Video to the DStv Explora Ultra’s pot of exceptional content," says Nyiko Shiburi, MultiChoice South Africa CEO, in a prepared statement.

"This opportunity unlocks access to more quality global content for our customers and is another way to access Amazon Prime Video content, whilst complementing DStv’s promise to offer the very best in local content.”

Similar to Netflix South Africa, DStv subscribers who have an existing Amazon Prime Video account can just log in through the DStv Explora Ultra. New Amazon Prime Video subscribers can open the app on the DStv Explora Ultra's homepage where they can sign up.

Unlike Netflix SA where the subscription fee is added in rand to the DStv subscriber's existing monthly bill, Amazon Prime Video will be billing customers directly - in order words, the subscription cost will not be forming part of the DStv bill.

Here are the 2 buttons that MultiChoice changed on its new DStv Explora Ultra remote control and what these small yet very big changes mean and reveal about the future.

by Thinus Ferreira

There are two small yet very big changes on the new DStv Explora Ultra remote control: Two of the buttons look different and are quite indicative of how DStv is stepping back in order to take a huge leap forward.

MultiChoice is busy releasing its new next-generation DStv Explora Ultra in retail at a recommended retail price of R2 499.

This new DStv Explora Ultra decoder gives DStv subscribers who might want to subscribe to it as well, or already have it and want to access it, a portal to Netflix South Africa. 

MultiChoice will soon very likely also offer similar access to Amazon Prime Video and in future likely also other subscription video-on-demand (SVOD) like the Walt Disney Company's Disney+, WarnerMedia's HBO Max, ViacomCBS's Paramount+, Discovery's to be launched new streamer and others that will all eventually reside on such a set-top box.

This is how the DStv Explora remote control has looked until now:

Here is how the DStv Explora Ultra remote control has changed:

A new blue "home" button

On the new DStv Explora Ultra remote control, MultiChoice has replaced the blue DStv oval button with a home icon.

Pressing this blue button, like before, takes the DStv subscriber directly to the home page of the DStv interface - one where there will now be the option to access and/or subscribe to third-party video streamers. 

MultiChoice hasn't said this, but there are clearly 2 reasons for removing the word "DStv" from this button and replacing it with a more generic "home" icon:

Firstly, MultiChoice literally wants the DStv subscriber to no longer necessarily think of "going to DStv" or accessing DStv, in as much as MultiChoice wants the video consumer to think of it as "going home". 

Pressing the home icon button, instead of pressing a "DStv" button, should give you the feeling and the consumer experience of "I'm home where all my stories are collected for me to access". 

Secondly, because MultiChoice is giving more and different access to more things it is "stepping back" in order to step forward. 

In a seemingly counter-intuitive way, but in a way that works very successfully, DStv now gets to look bigger by looking less interested in being seen in a "small" way on a button. DStv is now much bigger than a button. 

Through removing the word "DStv" from the button (the DStv brand name is still black-embossed at the bottom of the remote control) MultiChoice is sending a signal that it is becoming a video utility. 

MultiChoice is no longer as concerned whether you watch DStv specifically, or DStv Catch Up, or Netflix SA or in future Amazon Prime Video or Disney+. It just wants you as a pay-TV customer to engage with all of the wonderful potential content through its environment. 

MultiChoice sees itself as being bigger than "DStv" and able to offer more than a single this or a single that service - it wants to be the overall substrate on which, and through which, all of the various video moss grow.

Like Daniel Clamp says in Gremlins 2, "You make a place for things ... things come", or like the voice whispered to Kevin Costner in Field of Dreams from the cornfield: "If you build it, they will come". 

MultiChoice wants to be The Field and is building it.

A new white "Apps" button

This is basically also the reason for the change to the second button on the DStv Explora Ultra remote.

Above the "DStv" or now home icon blue button, the black "Showmax" button has been replaced with a white button.

This now-white button no longer carries the word Showmax and the Showmax brand symbol on it but now has a windows/grid-icon with the word "Apps".

Pressing this button no longer takes the DStv subscriber to Showmax, but to the newly designed SVOD carousel interface, the little storefront or store window where MultiChoice will display all of the various video streaming services it has on offer and has partnered with.

While Showmax will always remain MultiChoice's video streamer firstborn and therefore have a special place in its heart, the rival, highly successful "frenemies" are now equally welcome on the same faceplate.

MultiChoice no longer wants to highlight a specific preference for a user and come across as if it's playing favourites between them - whoever wants to come and video play will now be included in the "multi-choice" offered to the DStv subscriber.

This is the reason why MultiChoice hasn't yet announced that it is adding Amazon Prime Video as a video streamer to its new DStv Explora Ultra decoder.

by Thinus Ferreira

After rolling out access to Netflix South Africa through its new DStv Explora Ultra decoder from this week, MultiChoice will soon announce yet another video streamer addition - very likely Amazon Prime Video - and here's the reason why the pay-TV operator hasn't made this official announcement yet.

In June this year, MultiChoice slipped up when it included and revealed that both Netflix and Amazon Prime Video are the first two international subscription video-on-demand (SVOD) services that it plans to add to its new carousel of video streaming services.

MultiChoice included Netflix and Amazon Prime Video in its public 2019/2020 financial results presentation, only to quickly redo its presentation a day later to delete the Netflix and Amazon Prime Video references and imaging across its pages and then refusing to say anything about it.

Last week on Thursday MultiChoice finally officially announced its best kept open secret for months and said that DStv subscribers will be able to get access to Netflix SA through the new DStv Explora Ultra decoder that will go on sale from this week at R2 499.

MultiChoice timed the announcement of its partnership with Netflix through its new decoder, for Thursday morning to be on the same day as it released its financial results for the 6 months until the end of September 2020 on Thursday afternoon. In that way MultiChoice could have something new and buzzworthy to talk about with local and international investors on its investors' call on Friday on the day after the release of its latest set of numbers.  

So what happened to Amazon Prime Video on DStv?

Calvo Mawela, MultiChoice CEO, on Friday's investors' call, said that MultiChoice wants to give individual new video streamers and DStv each their own period of time to first publicise and market that individual new over-the-top (OTT) video addition.

In terms of attention management, MultiChoice, that is transitioning to the role of an aggregating video mall with different types of video shops housed inside it, wants to give the time to shine a spotlight on each of the video streaming windows that will start to populate its storefront, in order to maximise both the possible consumer awareness under potential customers, as well as possible media coverage.

"The only thing that we need to make sure of is that we give time for particular products to, a particular player to come in and get integrated and for the market to know that it is available, and get the marketing going. Then the other products will then also follow," Calvo Mawela said.

"But I can assure you that they're imminent. There will be others that are going to follow, we just need to make sure that there is opportunity in the market to make people aware of the product as they come in. So it will happen very, very soon," Calvo Mawela said.

Both ViacomCBS with its new Paramount+ streaming service and WarnerMedia with its HBO Max plan to roll them out internationally from 2021 and are potential shiny new streaming apps to pop up in future on the DStv Explora Ultra's user interface, although neither has said anything yet specifically about a potential launch date for South Africa or the African market as a territory.

Likewise The Walt Disney Company has rolled out its hugely popular Disney+ SVOD in Canada, North America, South America, the UK and Europe already, as well as New Zealand and Australia that are comparable TV markets to South Africa. Disney has so far been silent in response to media enquiries about when, or if, it plans to bring Disney+ to South Africa.

The MultiChoice-Netflix Upside Down explained: You can now watch or add Netflix through DStv - this is exactly how it works.

by Thinus Ferreira

It's not as difficult to do as trying to kill a demogorgon. MultiChoice's new DStv Explora Ultra decoder is the first set-top box that gives DStv subscribers the option to sign in with their existing Netflix account to watch Netflix through the DStv decoder, or to sign up for Netflix for the first time - and this is exactly how getting or watching Netflix through DStv now works:

There are basically two main ways you can now watch Netflix content through the DStv Explora Ultra decoder: Firstly, you can do so either with your already-existing Netflix account you're already paying in which case you just log in on the app with nothing that changes for you.

Secondly, you can sign up for a new Netflix account through the DStv Explora Ultra decoder, where you can choose to add the payment for it in rand to your monthly DStv bill.

In the case where you already have a Netflix account you don't pay anything more or extra to watch Netflix through the DStv Explora Ultra decoder besides what you're already directly paying to Netflix. If you already have a Netflix account, just open Netflix, sign in and start stream watching.

In the second case where you're signing up for Netflix through DStv - since MultiChoice is literally adding Netflix in what the biz calls an "add-in" - you will be able to also unsubscribe from Netflix and cancel it again at any time, irrespective and independently from your DStv bill. You're not forced to get Netflix and you're not forced to keep Netflix once you've signed up for it.

If you don't already have a Netflix account, the only way to add a Netflix account through MultiChoice to your DStv account, is through the DStv Explora Ultra decoder. 

You press the new white apps button on the DStv remote control, select Netflix and sign up. Payment will automatically be added to your DStv account using your existing payment method.

If you have had a Netflix membership before but it expired, MultiChoice now makes it possible to restart your membership through the DStv Explora Ultra. You go to the Netflix app, select "Join now" with your existing login and password and then "add" your expired Netflix account to your DStv account.

Not that it matters or makes a difference to you, but if you're asking or wondering - MultiChoice makes a commissioning fee from Netflix for every DStv customer who signs up or that it signs up through the DStv Explora Ultra - although it doesn't cost the actual DStv subscriber more to sign up this way. 

If you're wondering, yes it is also possible to make payment with a Netflix voucher if Netflix has been added to your DStv account - you will however have to input and make this payment with Netflix by going to add the voucher details on the netflix website into your account.

Of course once you've signed up for Netflix through a DStv Explora Ultra, you will be able to watch Netflix through your decoder - but you will now also be able to watch Netflix through a smartphone or laptop or other supported devices since the Netflix account belongs to you.

Some stranger things

Remember that Netflix is and remains a separate company and MultiChoice is and remains a separate company. 

Like the shops in Starcourt Mall, MultiChoice is just letting Netflix be a little shop with horror and other series inside its bigger shopping centre. Therefore, you can't get a refund from MultiChoice (the mall) if you haven't used a whole month of Netflix (the specific shop).

At the moment, you can add one Netflix membership per DStv subscription per DStv Explora Ultra - for instance: if you have one DStv Explora Ultra decoder on your DStv account, you can add one Netflix membership to it.

If you have two DStv Explora Ultra decoders linked in XtraView on your account you can still just add one Netflix membership to your overall DStv account. If you have two DStv Explora decoders on your account but they are not linked in XtraView - for instance one is yours and one is your mom's - you can add 2 Netflix memberships to your DStv account.

So, what happens when your DStv subscription becomes inactive because of non-payment or because you've disconnected it? Well, your Netflix will actually continue - meaning you will still be able to watch it, but only until your next Netflix renewal date, meaning it will disconnect when you're supposed to pay for it again.

If you want to continue using Netflix, you will need to go to Netflix to restart your membership.

Also, if you later want to keep Netflix but want to stop paying for it through your DStv account, you will need to change your method of payment through Netflix at netflix.com/account - the same if you decide you want to cancel Netflix.

So what happens when you pay for Netflix through your DStv account and now you sell your DStv Explora Ultra? It will sound complicated but it isn't really. 

Since your DStv subscription on the DStv Explora Ultra would first need to be cancelled, your Netflix will automatically be disconnected on your next Netflix renewal date. Then, if you want to continue using Netflix, you will need to go to the Netflix website, select another payment method and restart your Netflix membership.

Something else to keep in mind: Your DStv and Netflix subscription dates could fall on the same dates but they could very well be and very likely will actually be different dates. Netflix does not cater for pro rata payments. 

The date that you sign up for Netflix is when the binge-watching starts, so this date automatically becomes your Netflix renewal date. A DStv subscriber who have added Netflix to their existing bill to pay one amount in rand, will however only be making one payment to MultiChoice, with that payment date being the DStv payment date.

Who you gonna call if Netflix is blocked, ghostbusters? If your payment is through DStv, you contact MultiChoice. If you pay Netflix directly, you will need to contact Netflix. 

MultiChoice: Here's the 4 reasons why the new DStv Explora Ultra decoder that comes with built-in Netflix access is so expensive at R2499.

by Thinus Ferreira

When it goes on sale this week, MultiChoice's latest DStv Explora Ultra decoder that comes with the eye-watering recommended retail price of R2 499 is incredibly expensive and has caused instant sticker-shock for existing DStv subscribers who had thoughts of wanting to upgrade their decoders immediately.

The DStv Explora Ultra that costs R3 699 when it includes installation, will make wallets much flatter than the DStv Explora 3 that can be bought for R999 (or around R 1499 including installation).

The DStv Explora Ultra will be MultiChoice's first decoder that will give DStv subscribers access to Netflix South Africa and likely very soon also Amazon Prime Video. 

Other international video streaming services like Disney+, HBO Max, Paramouont+ and others will be added in future to the DStv Explora Ultra's carousel menu of over-the-top (OTT) services. 

But why such an expensive price for a decoder? Doesn't MultiChoice want customers to upgrade to better technology and more possible services where the pay-TV operator can then increase what in the biz is known as the average revenue per user (ARPU)?

Calvo Mawela, MultiChoice CEO, on Friday during the company's investors' call for its financial results for the 6 months until the end of September 2020 gave 4 reasons for the hefty price tag of the DStv Explora Ultra.

"If you look at it as a set-top box and considers that it does traditional linear TV, it does Catch Up, it does all of the other elements that we used to have in the previous DStv Explora; we have increased the memory, we have built-in Wifi and then we are able to add streaming apps as and when we have agreements with other subscription video-on-demand (SVOD) players coming into the market - that is the basis on which it is priced at that level," he said.  

"The other thing we have decided to do with the DStv Explora Ultra decoder is not to introduce any subsidies as yet, and that is why you see the pricing, if you compare with others, it's a little bit out of sync with what you have seen in the past."   

Tim Jacobs, MultiChoice chief financial officer (CFO), said that the DStv Explora Ultra decoder is "really targeted at early-adopters and we think that the initial target market is the guys that want to experiment a little bit".

"But like all of our products, we'll start and then we'll look at the market demand and then make judgement calls about whether to introduce pricing differentials [subsidies] later. It's a good starting point to simply introduce the DStv Explora Ultra into the market," he said.

ALSO READ: MultiChoice launches its new DStv Explora Ultra decoder offering Netflix in South Africa but not yet Amazon Prime Video.

ALSO READ: MultiChoice passes milestone of 20 million subscribers across Africa despite Covid-19, says it will focus on expanding its video streaming ecosystem.

ALSO READ: MultiChoice's growth plan unpacked: Less investment in international content with overseas shows now funnelled through storefront streamers, bigger investment in the local content the SABC is unable to produce.

MultiChoice launches its new DStv Explora Ultra decoder offering Netflix in South Africa but not yet Amazon Prime Video.

by Thinus Ferreira

MultiChoice has launched its new DStv Explora Ultra decoder that will go on sale from next week and that will offer DStv subscribers access to the video streaming services of Netflix and Showmax but not yet Amazon Prime Video.

The new DStv Explora Ultra has a recommended retail price of R2 499 for the just the decoder, and R3 699 when it includes installation.

The new DStv Explora Ultra decoder that follows after the DStv Explora 3B, has a built-in Wi-Fi function, and supports 4K Ultra HD and Dolby Atmos sound although MultiChoice doesn't broadcast any 4K TV channels currently.

The DStv Explora Ultra, wholly manufactured in South Africa, that MultiChoice said it would launch towards the end of this year has a redesigned interface and comes with a slightly changed remote control.

The new streaming carousel, as expected carries Showmax and Netflix, with MultiChoice that will roll out and populate the carousel with more third-party streaming services as time goes on.

Also as expected, MultiChoice will offer DStv subscribers the option of subscribing and unsubscribing to Netflix through the new decoder with the monthly Netflix charge that will be added in rand to their monthly bill. It's not yet clear how much the various Netflix packages through DStv will cost. Existing Netflix subscribers will also be able to use the decoder to sign into their Netflix account and watch Netflix that way.

Calvo Mawela, MultiChoice CEO, says "The DStv Explora Ultra has a range of amazing features developed to cater for how our customers watch content today".

"It delivers seamless enjoyment of broadcast, recording, streaming, downloaded and Catch Up content in one easy-to-use environment. The Explora Ultra makes it easier than ever before to find, explore and enjoy new content from across DStv channels and third-party streaming apps."

"Shifting consumer preferences and technological advances drive changes in the way video entertainment services are provided and consumed. This partnership leads with an expanded choice of content, ease and convenience of subscription and payment with the DStv Explora Ultra as an enabler."

Noaf Ereiqat, Netflix’s director of business development says "We’re excited about this partnership with the MultiChoice Group, bringing Netflix to the Explora Ultra set-top-box will make it easier for our members to seamlessly stream their favourite Netflix shows. That’s a win for avid entertainment fans in South Africa."

ALSO READ: FIRST LOOK. MultiChoice to unveil its new DStv Explora Ultra decoder, will also launch a new DStv Streama decoder with remote control that has YouTube and Showmax buttons.

2020 DStv Showcase: The most important announcements and revelations from this year's MultiChoice media event.

by Thinus Ferreira

With nothing left untouched 'cause of 'Crona, even MultiChoice's annual DStv Showcase was different and done differenly this year, with the 2020 DStv Showcase that was moved up from the usual end-of-the-year in-person media gathering, and done from a studio as a remote broadcast but again filled with jam--packed technology and content announcements.

MultiChoice switched up its usual DStv Showcase - mostly held in its auditoriums and cinema venue inside its MultiChoice City building in Randburg to across the street and Studio 6 inside the SuperSport studios.

Instead of SuperSport anchor Neil Andrews as the compère as in previous years, MultiChoice used Maps Maponyane as the host and a variety of presenters to front individual segments that were a combination of pre-taped promos and sizzle reels, Zoom interviews and in-studio interviews.

For the first time ever MultiChoice broadcast the DStv Showcase on television, opening up DStv channel 196 as an events channel for the 2-hour broadcast on the DStv decoders of selected media to watch it from home.

It did limit the interaction with press who couldn't ask questions or follow-up questions after sessions with media who had to email in written questions to an email address and with some that were answered at the end.

Here are the main must-know news and interesting titbits:

1. No mention of Netflix (or Amazon Prime Video or Disney+)
The media expected that MultiChoice would announce licensing deals with at least Netflix and Amazon Prime Video to carry their apps as over-the-top (OTT) services, folded in to its new carousel shopfront on its new range of DStv decoders.

In its latest financial year results MultiChoice said it would add at least two next to its own Showmax and JOOX and in its presentation revealed that it was Netflix and Amazon Prime Video before redoing and reissuing it.

At its 2020 DStv Showcase MultiChoice said nothing about Netflix or any other global streaming services, very likely because South Africa's Competition Commission has started an investigation into MultiChoice's plan which likely pushed the announcement back.


2. Go Pro
MultiChoice finally launched Showmax Pro and Showmax Pro Mobile in South Africa, a spiffier version of its existing Showmax subscription video-on-demand (SVOD) service with added bells and whistles in the forms of linear TV news channels and sport content included.

Showmax Pro costs R449 and Showmax Pro Mobile costs R225 per month.

Showmax Pro is now basically a cheaper "streaming DStv", offering a catalogue of entertainment content, combined with TV news and much of the sport offering from SuperSport.


3. Ultra and Streama
MultiChoice unveiled two new decoder versions that it will launch to market before the end of the year but gave neither launch dates nor retail prices.

The DStv Explora Ultra that will cost more than the DStv Explora 3A is the latest DStv Explora model. It has the capacity to, and in time will carry services like Netflix and Amazon Prime Video that will sit next to MultiChoice's existing services like DStv, DStv Catch Up and Showmax on the box.

Similar to the DStv Explora 3A, the DStv Explora Ultra has a recording capacity of 110 hours, will be able to pause live TV for 2 hours, have access to DStv BoxOffice, DStv Catch Up, provide an 8-day TV guide, have parental control and have interactive apps of SuperSport, News24 and weather.

The DStv Explora Ultra comes with a new "home page" with recommendations that showcase content from across DStv, Showmax, BoxOffice and selected streaming apps.

The new DStv Explora Ultra remote control also allows quick access to streaming apps and the set-top box comes with built-in WiFi.

The DStv Explora Ultra supports 4K and Dolby Atmos (where available and when connected to the correct equipment) although MultiChoice doesn't plan on launching any 4K-resolution TV channels anytime soon. 

The DStv Streama looks like a gaming console and works without a satellite dish and its associated cabling and all that is needed is a reliable home internet connection, a DStv Streama device and a TV set.

The DStv Streama offers an array of sport, entertainment, news and kids' content. The DStv Streama comes with apps like Showmax and YouTube and users will be able to "seamlessly switch between applications to view the content of your choice".

4. New third-party channels - including K-drama

DStv is getting 5 new TV channels, ranging from Mexican telenovelas and a Canadian kids channel to Turkish telenovelas and even South Korean or so-called "K"-dramas. 

MultiChoice will add tlnovelas on DStv channel 133 that "will run from 14 to 30 September. tlnovelas will broadcast an array of English-dubbed Mexican telenovelas from Latin America’s second-largest producer, Televisa.

ZooMoo that will launch on 1 October 2020 as a pop-up channel on DStv and run on channel 314 until 31 March 2021 is a Canadian kids’ channel that delivers a unique mix of live action combined with animation and puppets. 

KIX (pronounced "kicks") that MultiChoice already previously announced is coming to DStv on channel 114 from 1 October 2020 at 19:00 and is described as "the ultimate destination for action movies in Africa".

KIX will be available to DStv Premium, DStv Compact Plus, and DStv Compact subscribers in South Africa as well as across sub-Saharan Africa. The channel will offer DStv subscribers "a high octane blend of martial arts, action and thriller movies from the East and West, all presented in English".

The Turkish telenovela channel Timeless Drama Channel, SPI/FilmBox's premium Turkish drama channel, will start on DStv in November 2020 on DStv channel 123 with "high-quality, glossy telenovelas and costume dramas".

tvN that will start in November 2020 on DStv channel 134 will have South Korean dramas or so-called "K-drama".

tvN is from the Oscar-winning producers of Parasite, featuring shows produced by some of the biggest players in the Korean drama industry and serving up "glossy, powerful content".


5. DStv Rewards for couch potatoes

MultiChoice announced that it will launch a new star-tiered DStv Rewards loyalty programme in South Africa in September that will essentially reward loyal DStv subscribers for watching more TV.

The level that a DStv subscriber is pegged at and the type of rewards that they will qualify for will be determined by the DStv package a subscriber is on, for how long the person has been a subscriber (tenure), as well as product usage. For all of this a DStv subscriber gets awarded stars.

With DStv Rewards subscribers will qualify for upgrades, DStv subscription fee discounts, "free" DStv BoxOffice movie digital tokens, Uber Eats digital discount vouchers, birthday rewards, service vouchers, Showmax discounts, additional DStv channel access, exclusive experiences and "personal challenges".

6. Add M-Net Movies

MultiChoice has created a new M-Net Add Movies add-on package of R99 per month that has 3 M-Net Movies channels that can be added to any of its lower-tiered DStv bouquets.

The M-Net Movies Add Movies package will consist out of the channels: M-Net Movies 1 (DStv 104), M-Net Movies 2 (DStv 106), and the Afrikaans fliekNET (DStv 149) channel.

DStv Premium subscribers automatically get access to these movie channels but DStv Compact Plus, DStv Compact, DStv Family, DStv Access, DStv EasyView and DStv Indian subscribers will now be able to add the M-Net Movies Add Movies package for R99 per month to their DStv subscription fee.

7. DStv dishless

MultiChoice revealed more about its so-called "DStv dishless" service that it will be launching. 

Although the expectation was that it would be cheaper, DStv Streaming will cost exactly the same for every bouquet as traditional DStv, and a subscriber will have to pay for data in addition as well.

MultiChoice didn't announce when its DStv dishless version will become available for sale and sign-up.

MultiChoice said that the DStv app and its DStv dishless service will bring the same DStv content and channels as the existing service, that users can then watch through "any screen of their choice - via Smart TV, browser, mobile phone or gaming console with a consistent high-speed data connection".

MultiChoice said that "DStv residential packages are all available, with the full set of live channels and Catch Up shows. Streaming customers will be able to watch their favourite shows on Catch Up on four devices, with a maximum of two concurrent streams".

MultiChoice said that DStv will soon be partnering with telecommunications and internet service providers to offer bundled data packages in order to give DStv subscribers, using DStv streaming access, uncapped data along with whichever DStv streaming bouquet they are subscribed to.

8. Shorter Afrikaans series

M-Net's Afrikaans channels division kykNET will be producing a series of shorter dramas and move away from the 13-episode format for scripted content. 

9. Arendsvlei adds another day

kykNET's Afrikaans telenovela Arendsvlei produced by Penguin Films in Cape Town will extend from 3 to 4 episodes per week when the 3th season kicks off on kykNET & kie (DStv 145) on 28 September. The first on 1 October. Unannounced changes are also coming to kykNET's Cape Town done talk show Tussen Ons.

10. Still seeking Shaka

M-Net is still working on bringing the drama series Shaka Ilembe to screen and said that the series has officially entered pre-production. Yolisa Phahle, MultiChoice CEO of general entertainment and connected video, said it took Game of Thrones 10 years to make it to television.

The DStv Showcase played a "concept trailer" for Shaka Ilembe that it made in 2019 and reiterated that it's still looking for the lead to play Shaka. The series will be done in Zulu.

11. Blood Psalms

After its announcement of its new Canal+ co-production drama series Blood Psalms, M-Net revealed some further details of the Showmax Original series.

Filming has begin on the 10-episode series produced by Layla Swart and Jahmil X.T Qubeka's Yellowbone Entertainment in the Eastern Cape and Gauteng but MultiChoice and M-Net are keeing the specific locations a secret "to allow the crew to complete this massive production within the agreed timelines without any disruption from members of the public".

12. Siya and the sun

MultiChoice revealed more about Chasing the Sun, the 5-part SuperSport-produced documentary made in collaboration with the Springboks that will tell the behind-the-scenes story of their parth to the 2019 World Cup rugby win. 

Chasing the Sun will be broadcast on M-Net on Sunday 4 October at 18:00 and end on 1 November.

It will also be available on DStv Catch Up, SuperSport and Showmax. Gideon Khobane, SuperSport CEO, said that SuperSport is learning and will probably start to make more local sport documentaries similar to what ESPN and others have been doing.


13. Lifestyle and more TV channels for Africa

MultiChoice and M-Net are working on, and will roll out new localised entertainment channels in specific African countries like Ghana, Ethiopa and Mozambique over the coming months and into 2021, as well as a general lifestyle channel inspired by an African ethos for the continent.

Like Mzansi Magic in South Africa, Zambesi Magic in Zambia and Pearl Magic in Uganda, M-Net will launch a new general entertainment channel in Ghana but hasn't decided on a name yet. It will carry M-Net Original productions including Ghana telenovela, Ghana reality shows and Ghana comedy as a flagship channel for DStv subscribers there.

MultiChoice is also working on a general entertainment channel for Ethiopia where M-Net is already working on its first telenovela that will be in the Amharic language.

MultiChoice and M-Net will also launch an African lifestyle channel for the continent like Discovery's HGTV and BBC Lifestyle. "Now it's time to showcase to ourselves, the best of our fashion, the best of our cooking, and the best of the way in which we live," said Yolisa Phahle.

I Know that I'm shamelessly emotionally, visually and viscerally manipulated everytime @DStv, @MNet or @SuperSportTV make and show a super-cut sizzle reel of slo-mo scenes with evocative music. And yet, like the latest #DStvShowcase one, I fall for it. Every Single time.: pic.twitter.com/TecCsyC9cQ

— TVwithThinus (@TVwithThinus) August 20, 2020

14. Everybody wants to rule the world

Getting gooseflesh has always been the name of the game with MultiChoice, M-Net and SuperSport's sizzle reels and the 2020 DStv Showcase once again had one.

You know you're being shamelessly emotionally manipulated by it but like a fantasy visit to Disneyland, you want to live and experience it because of how it makes you feel.

To showcase it's internationally acquired content across DStv, Showmax and M-Net, the DStv Showmcase played an amazing sizzle reel using "Everybody wants to rule the world" from Tears for Fears.

New upcoming shows and new seasons of existing shows included in the stuuuuuningly evocative sizzle reel include FBI: Most Wanted; Love, Victor; Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist, His Dark Materials, I May Destroy You, The Undoing, The Third Day, Bad Boys for Life, Alex Rider, Britannia, Beat Bobby Flay, Say Yes to the Dress, This is Fate, Mom, Scooby-Doo, The March of the Polar Bears, Chicago Fire, Grammy Salute to Legends, Chicago Med, Chicago Fire, NCIS, Siren, Mrs. America, Lovecraft Country, The Handmaid's Tale, Fargo, The Good Lord Bird, I Still Believe, A Suitable Boy, Hightown, Reckoning, The Good Doctor, Devils, and The Titan Games.

The sizzle reel also included Our Girl, Small Axe, Belgravia, Strictly Come Dancing, Jamie: Keep Cooking and Carry On, Semi-Detached, The Mallorca Files, The Graham Norton Show, Race Across the World, Miss Scarlet and the Duke, Intelligence, Gordon Ramsay's 24 Hours to Hell and Back, Almost Paradise, The Gentlemen, The Rhythm Section, Alaska The Last Frontier, Family Affairs, Gangs of London, Killing Eve, Henry Danger, Katy Keene, Love Life, Mixed-ish, Bull, Genius: Aretha, Street Outlaws, Keeping Up with the Kardashians, Top Gear, Dolittle, Gold Rush: White Water, Surviving Jeffrey Epstein, 9-1-1 Lone Star, and several films.

FIRST LOOK. MultiChoice to unveil its new DStv Explora Ultra decoder, will also launch a new DStv Streama decoder with remote control that has YouTube and Showmax buttons.

by Thinus Ferreira

MultiChoice plans to launch a new DStv Explora Ultra decoder to market, as well as a DStv Streama decoder enabling video streaming and coming with a YouTube and Showmax buttons.

MultiChoice will unveil the two new decoders aimed at keeping DStv subscribers venturing into video streaming within its own MultiChoice ecosystem this afternoon during its 2020 DStv Showcase media presentation for the press.

To help hype its 2020 #DStvShowcase media presentation that will kick off at 13:00 on Wednesday afternoon, MultiChoice on social media shared with the public images of its new DStv Explora Ultra and DStv Streama decoders.

MultiChoice's new DStv Explora Ultra that looks like a bigger set-top box (STB) with curved edges, will carry third-party subscription video-on-demand (SVOD) apps, like for instance Netflix and Amazon Prime Video, enabling DStv subscribers to watch these services through the connected decoder.

MultiChoice's DStv Streama decoder, with a grill-like, video-console look, has a small remote control with Showmax and YouTube buttons underneath a blue "home" button.


DStv Explora Ultra
MultiChoice didn't announce a retail price for the new DStv Explora Ultra, or when it will go on sale although it will cost more than the existing DStv Explora 3A.

Similar to the DStv Explora 3A, the DStv Explora Ultra has a recording capacity of 110 hours, will be able to pause live TV for 2 hours, have access to DStv BoxOffice, DStv Catch Up, provide an 8-day TV guide, have parental control and have interactive apps of SuperSport, News24 and weather.

The DStv Explora Ultra comes with a new "home page" with recommendations that showcase content from across DStv, Showmax, BoxOffice and selected streaming apps. 

The new DStv Explora Ultra remote control also allows quick access to streaming apps and the set-top box comes with built-in WiFi.

The DStv Explora Ultra supports 4K and Dolby Atmos (where available and when connected to the correct equipment) although MultiChoice doesn't plan on launching any 4K-resolution TV channels anytime soon. 

MultiChoice is also not planning on delivering any of the third-party app content through satellite. All of the streaming services that MultiChoice might add in future - for instance Netflix, HBO Max, Disney+, Star, Amazon Prime Video - will all be delivered over the internet through connecting the DStv Explora Ultra to the internet and a data stream.

Since certain third-party apps that will in future become available on the DStv Explora Ultra offer 4K streaming content - subject to availability and subscription terms - DStv subscribers will be able to watch that content in 4K. 

MultiChoice says that it does not yet offer 4K streaming, though this may change in the future.

MultiChoice also says that subscriptions to these third-party apps - whichever they might be - are separate to DStv subscriptions. Some services like SuperSport and People’s Weather will initially be included in the DStv subscription and MultiChoice may later roll out offers that allow a customer to get a discount or special offer on some of these third-party subscriptions.

The DStv Explora Ultra is wholly manufactured in South Africa and its enclosure is made of 100% recycled material.

The DStv Explora Ultra will cost more than the existing DStv Explora. DStv subscribers moving from an existing DStv Explora model will not need to make any changes to their installation. 

MultiChoice says they can simply unplug the older Explora then plug in the DStv Explora Ultra (making sure to use the HDMI cable and power supply packaged with the decoder) and follow the wizard to connect the WiFi.


DStv Streama
MultiChoice didn't announce a retail price for the new DStv Streama or when it will go on sale.

MultiChoice says that its new DStv Streama decoder works without a satellite dish and its associated cabling and all that is needed is a reliable home internet connection, a DStv Streama device and a TV set.

The DStv Streama offers an array of sport, entertainment, news and kids' content. 

The DStv Streama comes with apps like Showmax and YouTube and users will be able to "seamlessly switch between applications to view the content of your choice".

 The DStv Streama can be connected through home WiFi or an ethernet cable, and an HDMI input connection on a TV set.

DStv subscribers will be able to stream all the channels available on their DStv subscription as well as access the Catch Up content for those channels. MultiChoice says that when using the DStv Streama, it counts as one of the four devices for use with the DStv App.

The DStv Streama is built on top of the RDK platform. This is an operator tier platform, designed and built by a collective of TV operators (including Sky and Comcast). Its secure environment protects content rights holders, which are key to the pay-TV and OTT industry.

MultiChoice says that RDK was selected because it enables it to deliver the best entertainment experience for customers whilst enabling flexibility and security.

People won't need to be a DStv subscriber to use the DStv Streama but will need a DStv login. No active DStv subscription is required to use the DStv Streama.