Showmax

Showmax
Type of site
OTT platform
Available inEnglish
FoundedAugust 19, 2015 (2015-08-19)
Headquarters
Johannesburg
,
South Africa
Area served
IndustryEntertainment
ParentMultiChoice (Canal+ S.A.) (70%)
NBCUniversal (30%)
URLshowmax.com
RegistrationRequired
Users3.1 million (2024)[2]
Launched19 August 2015 (2015-08-19) (original)
12 February 2024 (2024-02-12) (relaunch)
Current statusActive (planned closure)

Showmax is a South African subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service that launched[3] in 2015.[4]

Its majority owner (with a shareholding of 70%) is South African satellite TV company MultiChoice. American conglomerate NBCUniversal owns 30% in all territories except Nigeria, where NBCUniversal holds an indirect 23.7% stake in the local subsidiary.[5]

In 2023, Showmax announced a partnership with NBCUniversal and Sky. The new Showmax launched in February 2024, with a brand-new app and streaming platform, as well as an unprecedented content slate.[6]

Showmax uses a localisation strategy[7] to take on established video on demand competitors with a focus on local content and partnerships with mobile telcos.[8][9] It has a customer base of 2.1 million subscribers Africa-wide first place in the continent's market overtaking Netflix's 1.8 million by November 2023.[10]

The Showmax catalogue consists of series, movies and documentaries from Hollywood, Kenya, Nigeria, Ghana, South Africa and the UK, among others, and content in English, Afrikaans, isiZulu, Kiswahili, Sepedi, SeTswana, Sesotho and isiXhosa, and other African languages.

Showmax's engineering team was originally based in the Czech Republic, but has since merged with Sky UK's Global Streaming team.[11]

In March 2026, it was announced that Showmax would be shut down, and replaced with the Canal+ streaming service.[12]

History

In December 2015, Showmax expanded its reach to audiences in Europe, Oceania and North America, with lineups tailored for African expats.[13]

In May 2016, Showmax expanded to 36 countries in Africa, taking the total number of countries in which Showmax is available to 65.[14] In July of the same year, Showmax passed the 10 million views milestone.[15]

In August 2016, the Showmax logo was changed from framed black and white logotype using camel case to an all lower-case logotype with added dark magenta and teal stripes.[16] In October of the same year, Showmax launched Showmax Select and Showmax Premium in Kenya.[17]

In January 2017, Showmax partnered with SEACOM to put caching servers in Nairobi, Kenya.[18] A month later, Showmax launched in Poland.[19]

In December 2017, Saturday Night Live Polska launched as their original series.[20]

On 31 January 2019, Showmax was closed in Poland due to slow growth.[21]

On 7 July 2020, Showmax Pro was launched. The new service bundled the existing Showmax entertainment service with music channels, news, and live sport streaming from SuperSport.[22]

In March 2023, MultiChoice and Comcast's NBCUniversal and Sky announced that they would partner with Showmax in Africa, with NBCU owning 30% of the new entity and MultiChoice owning 70%. The joint venture now harnesses Peacock technology and includes content from Peacock and Sky, as well as African content, such as Showmax Originals and local content from MultiChoice's proprietary channels, including Mzansi Magic, Africa Magic and Maisha Magic at re-launch.[23]

On 15 November 2023, Showmax announced plans for a relaunch with a brand-new app in February 2024, after the announcement of the partnership between Showmax and international media heavyweight Comcast's NBCUniversal and Sky in March.[24] With the relaunch, Showmax introduced a new sports plan called Showmax Premier League, giving subscribers live-stream access to all Premier League games, courtesy of SuperSport, on mobile devices.

Other plans on offer post-launch include Showmax Entertainment, available on up to five devices with two concurrent streams, providing unlimited access to all the local and international series, movies, documentaries and kids' shows in the Showmax catalogue; and Showmax Entertainment Mobile, which includes access to the same entertainment catalogue, but only on one mobile device, with one stream.

With the announcement of the relaunch, Showmax also unveiled a brand-new logo, and explained how migration onto the global, robust Peacock streaming platform allows the service to scale fast.[25] The content slate that hit Showmax after the launch in February 2024 includes a record number of African Originals, as well as a massive line-up of international hit series and blockbuster movies.[26]

HBO & Warner Bros content left the service in January 2026 after MultiChoice failed to reach an agreement with Warner Bros. Discovery over the extension of its content slate on the platform.

Planned closure

On 5 March 2026, MultiChoice's new owners Canal+ announced that Showmax would be discontinued after a comprehensive review of the former's streaming business.[27] Showmax lost $522 million dollars in the 3 previous years with revenue declining from $61.6 million to $45.2 million.[28]

The shutdown is expected to raise cost savings from €150 million (approx. $177.41) million 2025 to €250 million (approx. $295.68) million in 2026. [28] MultiChoice has started to rebrand Showmax Originals as content for its television channels. [27] Six days later, it was announced that it will be replaced by the Canal+ app in the near future.

At the time of the closure announcement, Showmax had achieved significant annual subscriber growth, gained 27% of the South African streaming service market share, and gained 17% of the African streaming service market share, overtaking Netflix in terms of subscriber count. Despite this, due to reported poor management, the service had made multiple annual losses.[29][29]

Features

Downloads

Showmax's download feature allows users to download up to 25 shows or movies at a time and watch them offline on Android and iOS tablets and smartphones. There are four different quality settings to reduce the amount of data required to download.[30]

Bandwidth capping

In January 2024, Showmax released their new bandwidth caps, which include a low cap that uses only 60 MB per hour on mobile, with three other bandwidth caps that use up to 240 MB/hour, 330 MB/hour and 1.6 GB/hour respectively on mobile, allowing subscribers to manage their data usage while streaming.[31]

Multiple profiles

In August 2016, Showmax added a multiple profile feature including the ability to set up child-friendly profiles[32] with three age settings.

Mobile plan

In October 2019, Showmax introduced a mobile-only plan.[33] According to Showmax,[34] "Smartphones and tablets are, for many in Africa, the primary, if not only, window to the internet, and up until now none of the most popular SVoD services has designed a product specifically for mobile usage."

Showmax Pro

In July 2020, Showmax launched live sport streaming service Showmax Pro and began roll out across 40 countries in Africa. In June 2019, Showmax began testing sport live-streaming, and by 2022, the Showmax Pro service was available across 50 African countries in sub-Saharan Africa.[35]

On 1 October 2023, Showmax announced that Showmax Pro would no longer be available for subscription ahead of the relaunch of Showmax.[36] By 30 November 2023, Showmax Pro was phased out to make way for Showmax's new sports-streaming product, Showmax Premier League, which gives subscribers access to all 380 games of the Premier League, all available to live stream on their mobile devices.[37]

Showmax Originals

Showmax Originals include:

References

  1. ^ "Introduction". Showmax. Retrieved 20 May 2019.
  2. ^ "Surprise in Showmax and Netflix subscriber battle". Retrieved 19 March 2025.
  3. ^ "ShowMax: we're better than Netflix".
  4. ^ Lautenbach, Kyle (21 August 2015). "Showmax officially launched in South Africa, here are the details". IGN Africa.
  5. ^ "MultiChoice and Comcast's NBCUniversal and Sky announce partnership". 2 March 2023.
  6. ^ "The new Showmax revolutionises streaming in Africa". 15 January 2024.
  7. ^ Wexler, Alexandra (24 December 2016). "In Africa, a Homegrown Rival Takes on Netflix". The Wall Street Journal. ISSN 0099-9660. Retrieved 24 January 2017.
  8. ^ Alagbe, Jesusegun (21 March 2024). "How Prime Video failed so spectacularly in Africa". Rest of World.
  9. ^ "Showmax and MTN partner to make streaming even more affordable in South Africa". 23 January 2024.
  10. ^ Dosunmu, Damilare (14 February 2024). "How an African streaming service dethroned Netflix". Rest of World.
  11. ^ "Meet Stefi, Engineering Manager". Sky Careers. Retrieved 28 November 2024.
  12. ^ Jan Vermeulen (10 March 2026). "Showmax beat Netflix and still failed". MyBroadband. Retrieved 16 March 2026.
  13. ^ "kykNET goes global on-demand on Showmax". Channel. Archived from the original on 18 February 2017. Retrieved 24 January 2017.
  14. ^ Shapshak, Toby. "Netflix Competitor Showmax Launches into 36 African Countries". Forbes. Retrieved 24 January 2017.
  15. ^ Hlongwane, Sefiso. "Impressive! ShowMax garners over 10 million views in less than a year". Times LIVE. Retrieved 24 January 2017.
  16. ^ "ShowMax changes logo, hits 10 millions views". Channel. Retrieved 28 December 2017.
  17. ^ Shapshak, Toby. "ShowMax Goes Mobile in Kenya". Forbes. Retrieved 24 January 2017.
  18. ^ "ShowMax servers now in Kenya". www.techcentral.co.za. 23 January 2017. Retrieved 24 January 2017.
  19. ^ Shapshak, Toby. "African Internet Giant Naspers Launches Streaming Service in Poland". Forbes. Retrieved 23 February 2017.
  20. ^ ""Saturday Night Live". Aktorzy zapowiadają polską edycję amerykańskiego show!". Telemagazyn.pl (in Polish). 2 December 2017. Retrieved 4 December 2017.
  21. ^ "Showmax wychodzi z Polski. Platforma będzie dostępna tylko do końca stycznia". WP Teleshow (in Polish). 12 December 2018. Retrieved 12 December 2018.
  22. ^ Shapshak, Toby. "Africa's Biggest TV Operator Launches Streaming Soccer Service, Showmax Pro". Forbes. Retrieved 9 July 2020.
  23. ^ "Why Peacock Technology and an NBCUniversal-Sky Partnership Could Turbocharge African Streamer Showmax (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. 3 March 2023. Retrieved 7 March 2023.
  24. ^ "Showmax sets sights on becoming top streaming service in Africa with bold relaunch". 15 November 2023.
  25. ^ "Showmax sets sights on becoming top streaming platform in Africa with bold relaunch". 15 November 2023.
  26. ^ "The new Showmax launches in February 2024 with an incredible content slate". 8 January 2024.
  27. ^ a b Kimuyu, Hilary (5 March 2026). "Showmax streaming service to shut down after 11 years". Daily Nation. Archived from the original on 7 March 2026. Retrieved 15 March 2026.
  28. ^ a b Adegboyega, Ayodeji (12 March 2026). "Canal+ calls Showmax an 'expensive failure' after $522m losses, targets $270million cost savings". Business Insider Africa. Archived from the original on 15 March 2026. Retrieved 15 March 2026.
  29. ^ a b "A Gay-Friendly Guide to Cape Town". Magic828. 13 March 2026. Retrieved 16 March 2026.
  30. ^ "How to download with Showmax". 24 January 2024.
  31. ^ "How to use Showmax's bandwidth capping to manage data". 23 January 2024.
  32. ^ Fripp, Charlie (4 August 2016). "ShowMax now has profiles to protect kids from adult content". htxt.africa. Retrieved 24 January 2017.
  33. ^ "What's the difference between the Mobile Only and Standard plans on Showmax?". Showmax Stories. 23 October 2019. Retrieved 3 March 2020.
  34. ^ "Showmax launches new plan aimed at increasing Africa's access to Video on Demand". Showmax Stories. 22 November 2019. Retrieved 3 March 2020.
  35. ^ "Showmax launches new live-streaming service". Showmax Stories. 7 July 2020. Retrieved 9 July 2020.
  36. ^ "Showmax Pro being discontinued".
  37. ^ "The new Showmax is revolutionising streaming for Africa". 15 January 2024.
  38. ^ Kruger, Ari (29 June 2017). "Suzelle DIY actress builds a Showmax first". sketchbook-studios. Retrieved 30 May 2021.
  39. ^ Chutel, Lynsey (25 January 2019). "An original teen drama shows streaming service Showmax is ready to grow up". Quartz Africa. Retrieved 15 February 2019.
  40. ^ Kahla, Cheryl (4 February 2020). "The Girl From St Agnes: Hard to watch but impossible to stop". The South African.
  41. ^ Kahla, Cheryl (6 February 2020). "Trippin' With Skhumba: Get ready for Showmax's first Original travel show". The South African.
  42. ^ "Somizi and Mohale's 'The Union' breaks viewing records on Showmax". The South African. 27 February 2020. Retrieved 9 July 2020.
  43. ^ "'Rage', Showmax's first original horror movie tells a gripping story". www.iol.co.za. Retrieved 9 July 2020.
  44. ^ The Real Housewives of Durban, with its high profile cast, now coming to Showmax first
  45. ^ "Showmax & CANAL+ confirm production of hit Kenyan procedural Crime and Justice S2". Showmax Stories. 30 November 2021. Retrieved 3 December 2021.
  46. ^ "Filming has wrapped on DAM, a new Showmax Original". Showmax Stories. 10 November 2020. Retrieved 10 December 2021.
  47. ^ Whittock, Jesse (18 September 2023). ""Boetie Boer: Inside The Mind Of A Monster": Showmax Orders Chilling True Crime Story Of South African Serial Killer". Deadline. Retrieved 12 March 2024.
  48. ^ "130-episode epic drama series 'Cheta M' debuts on Showmax on February 12". Pulse Nigeria. 1 February 2024. Retrieved 2 February 2024.
  49. ^ "Showmax Unveils Trailer for "Sadau Sisters", Show To Premiere On February 12". 31 January 2024. Retrieved 2 February 2024.
  50. ^ Import, Pongrass (17 September 2023). "Red Ink: A visual masterpiece set to premiere on Showmax". Comaro Chronicle. Retrieved 2 February 2024.
  51. ^ Bona, Staff (31 January 2024). "WATCH: Teen drama 'Youngins' to debut on Showmax". Bona Magazine. Retrieved 2 February 2024.
  52. ^ Rozanne (25 January 2024). "Kyk nou: Eerste lokprent vir wilde Afrikaanse universiteitsreeks 'Wyfie' op Showmax". Terloops. Retrieved 2 February 2024.
  53. ^ Cannon, Nicholas (2 March 2024). "Catch Me A Killer: release date, cast, plot, trailer, episode guide, exclusive interview and everything you need to know". What to Watch. Retrieved 11 March 2024.
  54. ^ Goldbart, Max (25 January 2024). "'Catch Me a Killer': Showmax unveils trailer for serial killer profiler series starring 'Game of Thrones' Charlotte Hope" (video + text). Deadline.
  55. ^ Goldbart, Max (25 January 2024). "'Catch Me A Killer': Showmax Unveils Trailer For Serial Killer Profiler Series Starring 'Game Of Thrones' Charlotte Hope". Deadline. Retrieved 2 February 2024.
  56. ^ Maako, Keitumetse. "Showmax announces Widows Unveiled and renews fan-favourites ahead of platform relaunch". Life. Retrieved 2 February 2024.
  57. ^ Rall, Se-Anne (9 March 2024). "Showmax and Multichoice stand by decision to air 'Tracking Thabo Bester' docu-series". Independent Online. Retrieved 11 March 2024.
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