After more than a decade of trying to carve out a homegrown streaming service, Showmax is set to close. The African platform, run by MultiChoice Group now a subsidiary of French broadcaster Canal+ will be wound down in the coming months as part of a major cost-cutting and efficiency drive.
The decision, approved by the Showmax board and communicated to subscribers on Thursday, comes in the wake of Canal+’s $3 billion acquisition of MultiChoice. While no final closure date has been announced, the company said legal processes related to the takeover are still being finalised.
“This decision reflects our focus on strengthening our overall digital offering and ensuring long-term sustainability in an increasingly competitive streaming environment,” MultiChoice said in a message to customers.
Subscribers can continue using the service without interruption for now. Regarding the future of current subscriptions and content, the company said a migration plan is being developed and will be communicated to users in the coming weeks.
The closure is the first significant restructuring since Canal+ completed its full takeover of MultiChoice last September. Over several years, the French broadcaster steadily increased its stake in the South African pay-TV operator before acquiring full control in a deal valued at roughly R46 billion ($2.7 billion).
Canal+ has long seen Africa as a key growth market for television and streaming. The combined group now reaches more than 40 million subscribers across 70 countries, establishing a strong presence in a region where pay-TV penetration remains relatively low.
Launched in 2015, Showmax was MultiChoice’s answer to international streaming services like Netflix and Amazon Prime Video. The platform initially gained attention by combining international hits with locally produced African content and was once promoted as the continent’s best chance to build a homegrown streaming giant.
Financial challenges, however, persisted. In the three years leading up to Canal+’s acquisition, Showmax accumulated losses of about €370 million ($429 million). Even after a major relaunch in 2024, the platform continued to struggle.
MultiChoice’s final report before the takeover showed widening losses and declining revenues, underscoring the difficulty of building a profitable streaming business in Africa’s price-sensitive markets.
In early 2024, MultiChoice partnered with NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast, to relaunch Showmax using the technology behind the American streaming platform Peacock. The partners injected $309 million in new equity, hoping that upgraded technology and a bigger pipeline of original content would accelerate subscriber growth.
Despite these efforts, Showmax will now close, ending one of Africa’s most ambitious attempts at creating a local streaming powerhouse.
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