In a bold move aiming to reshape streaming in Africa, the highly-anticipated new Showmax has made its grand entrance. A collaborative vision of MultiChoice, Comcast’s NBCUniversal, and Sky, the streaming giant has revealed a refreshed identity, a vast content portfolio, and a robust platform.

Showmax

The content portfolio will include licenced content from Comcast’s Peacock streaming platform, along with a vast array of local original content – developed throughout Africa. At launch on 12 February, the platform will feature 21 African Originals.

Premier League on mobile

At the heart of this offering is the standalone Premier League plan for mobile on Showmax Premier League, providing access to all 380 live games for just R69 a month.

Marc Jury, Showmax CEO, highlights the monumental impact this holds for the continent’s 450 million smartphone users, bringing football enthusiasts an unmatched experience at a reasonable price.

“Africa is incredibly important to the Premier League and our clubs; 20% of TV audiences on any given matchday come from Africa,” notes Richard Masters, Premier League CEO. The Showmax initiative is celebrated for putting the world of Premier League football directly into the hands of fans, fostering unprecedented levels of engagement.

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The tech and content backbone

Backing Showmax’s streaming ambitions is a robust platform provided by Peacock, active in over 70 countries.

Patrick Miceli, Executive Vice President & Chief Technology Officer at NBCUniversal, assures Showmax audiences of a world-class streaming experience, powered by Peacock’s cutting-edge technology.

The local content lineup of the new Showmax is equally impressive, with 21 new Showmax Originals set to launch in February, marking a 150% increase in production output from the previous year.

Through strategic partnerships with Comcast’s NBCUniversal and Sky, Showmax secures a pipeline of globally acclaimed titles, including Fast X, Asteroid City, The Irrational, and Killing It.

The Showmax factor

Calvo Mawela, MultiChoice Group CEO, says, “Nobody understands Africa like we do.” Showmax’s commitment to the African market is evident not only in its diverse content slate but also in its innovative approach to accessibility. Showmax is the first to introduce mobile downloads for offline viewing, a mobile-only plan, and competitive pricing, making premium entertainment more accessible than ever.

The service’s payment experience is facilitated by Moment, a MultiChoice joint venture partner, working with over 200 payment partners to establish a comprehensive pan-African payments network. This includes the ability to buy Showmax vouchers at retail partners like Shoprite Moneymarket.

Additionally, DStv customers can add Showmax to their monthly bill, unlocking substantial discounts.

Pricing and availability

The new Showmax app will hit app stores from 23 January 2024, with a staggered rollout across 44 markets. The full launch will occur on 12 February 2024. Existing customers will receive communication on accessing the new app, ensuring a smooth transition.

Promising low data demand, Showmax has said that it will feature a ‘low data’ mode on mobile and on TV to allow for users on capped data plans. On this mode, users should only use 40MB per hour on mobile and just 100MB per hour on TV.

Pricing will be as follows:

  • Showmax Entertainment drops to R89 a month
  • Showmax Premier League mobile plan is R69 at launch
  • Showmax Entertainment Mobile offered for just R39 a month at launch
  • Bundled offers from R99