MultiChoice is planning a major overhaul of its DSTV satellite service as it attempts to reduce subscriber losses.
The company aims to revamp its channel bouquets and attract younger viewers, whose media consumption habits differ significantly from older generations.
In an interview with TechCentral, MultiChoice South Africa CEO Byron du Plessis revealed that the changes will extend beyond the potential unbundling of SuperSport from DStv. The company is exploring various models to determine the best approach for packaging its content in South Africa. This process is expected to conclude within the next six months.
Du Plessis noted that MultiChoice has not made significant changes to its packages or go-to-market strategy in the past 12 years, making an overhaul necessary.
Last month, MultiChoice reported losing 1.2 million DStv subscribers across its African markets, including South Africa, in the past year. The previous year saw a loss of 1.6 million subscribers, with about half of these losses occurring in South Africa.
The company is conducting customer research to determine the best models for the South African market. This research will inform further studies on how customer behaviour might change and its impact on the company’s financial performance. Any proposed changes will need board approval before implementation.
MultiChoice has already started making smaller customer-focused changes ahead of the planned overhaul. For example, in April, the company increased the number of simultaneous streams on DStv Stream from one to two.
