Understanding the Decline in DStv Subscribers in South Africa
DStv, the pay-TV service provided by MultiChoice, has experienced a decrease in its subscriber base in South Africa over the past year, according to MultiChoice’s latest annual report. The number of subscribers dropped from 8.16 million to 8.016 million between March 2022 and March 2023, representing a reduction of approximately 144,000 or 1.8%.
In the previous year, from 2021 to 2022, the decline was much smaller, with a loss of about 17,000 subscribers, bringing the year-end subscriber count from 8.177 million to 8.16 million.
Until recently, DStv had been consistently adding subscribers each year. However, MultiChoice has now introduced a new metric to measure its customer base size, focusing on the number of active subscribers within a 90-day period rather than the count of paying customers at the end of the financial year. Despite this change, MultiChoice continues to include year-end subscriber numbers in its reports.
The report provides a graphical representation of DStv’s subscriber numbers from March 2018 to March 2023. During the financial years of 2021/2022 and 2022/2023, the number of 90-day active subscribers in South Africa increased from 9 million to 9.3 million, indicating a 3% rise. Approximately 290,000 90-day active subscribers were added during this period.
Among the three main customer segments of DStv, only the entry-level Mass-market customers experienced growth, with an increase of 10% from 4.9 million to 5.3 million. These customers opt for more affordable packages such as EasyView, Access, and Family, which are priced lower than the higher-end bouquets offered in the Mid-market and Premium segments.
In contrast, both the Mid-Market and Premium segments saw a decline of approximately 100,000 90-day active subscribers each. The Mid-Market segment, which includes Compact and Commercial packages, decreased from 2.8 million to 2.7 million, reflecting a 3% decline. The Premium segment, encompassing the Premium and Compact Plus packages, experienced a 6% decline in customers, dropping from 1.4 million to 1.3 million. This decline is similar to the significant drop observed during the 2020/2021 financial year, which was partially attributed to cost-cutting measures during the COVID-19 pandemic.
MultiChoice identified load-shedding, the practice of scheduled power outages due to electricity supply constraints, as a significant factor contributing to the difference between the 90-day and year-end subscriber numbers. During stages 4 and above of load-shedding, there was a noticeable increase in customer churn, even among those with disposable income. While the higher count of 90-day active subscribers indicates that customers still value the DStv product, the decline of 140,000 year-end subscribers suggests a more selective approach to signing up, aiming to avoid periods of excessive load-shedding.
As a result of these changes, there has been a 5% decline in the blended average revenue per user (ARPU) for all DStv customers, dropping from R269 to R256. Despite gaining more customers in the Mass-market segment, DStv’s ARPU in this segment has also decreased to R96. This indicates a trend of customers within this segment downgrading from more expensive entry-level packages to cheaper options.
