Multichoice, NBCUniversal and Sky Partner to Relaunch Showmax as a Leading Streaming Service in Africa
Building on MultiChoice’s presence in 50 markets, its successful Showmax brand, and its great track record of execution on the continent, partnership offers growth opportunities in Africa. Showmax, powered by NBCUniversal’s Peacock technology platform and featuring top-notch content from NBCUniversal and Sky, will be relaunched by MultiChoice (https://www.Multichoice.com), giving viewers the best possible access to local and international entertainment as well as live English Premier League (EPL) football games.
At a time when Africa is approaching an inflection point in terms of broadband connectivity and affordability, MultiChoice Group (MultiChoice) (JSE: MCG) and Comcast’s (NASDAQ: CMCSA) NBCUniversal and Sky today announced a new partnership that will bring some of the best content and technology to streaming customers across MultiChoice’s 50-market footprint in sub-Saharan Africa. 30% will belong to NBCUniversal and 70% will be held by MultiChoice under the new Showmax group. (*Observe Note. It will build on Showmax’s current popularity and seek to establish itself as Africa’s top streaming provider.
Showmax members will have access to a vast library of premium content, offering African audiences the finest of local and international programming, thanks to Peacock’s industry-leading, globally-scaled technology. In addition to live English Premier League (EPL) football, the service will combine MultiChoice’s increasing investment in local content with a distinctive pipeline of award-winning and critically acclaimed international content licensed from NBCUniversal and Sky, third party content from HBO, Warner Brothers International, Sony, and other sources, and other content. The collaboration will also give access to the best local programming from MultiChoice’s owned channels, such as Mzansi Magic, Africa Magic, and Maisha Magic, as well as Showmax Originals.
Through the licensing of both technology and content, NBCUniversal and Sky will continue to support Peacock’s streaming platform, which ended 2022 with over 20 million paid customers in the US, and Peacock’s significant portfolio of worldwide media assets.
In 2015, we introduced Showmax as the first streaming service available in Africa, and we’re quite proud of how well it’s done so far. According to Calvo Mawela, CEO of MultiChoice, this deal gives the Showmax team a fantastic opportunity to collaborate with Comcast and its affiliates, a major worldwide player, and reach new heights.
The new business endeavor strengthens our already solid relationship and expands upon our technical cooperation with Sky Glass, which we first announced in September of last year. We think we are in an excellent position to build a successful platform moving forward.
“Our new streaming and programming relationship with MultiChoice, NBCUniversal, and Sky takes our partnership to the next level in one of the world’s most vibrant, fastest-growing markets,” said Dana Strong, Group Chief Executive Officer of Sky. Are delighted to assist MultiChoice in advancing its Showmax streaming service after announcing it as a Sky Glass platform customer last year.
This partnership is an incredible opportunity to further scale the global presence of Peacock’s world-class streaming technology, as well as to introduce millions of new customers to extensive premium content from NBCUniversal and Sky’s stellar entertainment brands,” said Matt Strauss, Chairman, Direct-to-Consumer & International, NBCUniversal. The debut date, content, and cost of the new Showmax service, among other information, will be revealed later.
