MultiChoice recently announced a 3% increase in its advertising revenue in South Africa, attributed to a robust sports schedule that offset the impact of a challenging economic landscape.
SuperSport, known for its prominent sports broadcasting, took centre stage during the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, providing the most comprehensive coverage globally. The network covered an impressive 1,200 live events across 2,900 broadcast hours over 19 days, utilising eight dedicated linear channels, five OTT streaming channels, a SuperSport SuperScreen, and a 24-hour Olympic News Update channel. This extensive coverage resulted in a remarkable 20% increase in unique viewers compared to the Tokyo 2020 Olympics.
The Euro 2024 tournament also attracted significant viewership, particularly in MultiChoice’s two largest markets, where strategic tiering allowed access for DStv Compact subscribers in South Africa and DStv Access subscribers in Nigeria. This approach bolstered subscriber activity and reconnection rates for those on the DStv Access package.
In February, MultiChoice announced the addition of the La Liga football channel for its DStv Access subscribers following the renewal of its licensing agreement with the league. Additionally, the company credited the cessation of load-shedding and the introduction of popular programming to uplifting DStv Access performance.
The success of South Africa’s national cricket team also played a pivotal role in DStv’s popularity. The Proteas’ advancement to the ICC T20 Men’s World Cup final generated a 17% boost in viewership compared to the previous tournament. This was complemented by the thrilling Rugby Championship, which saw the Springboks claim victory and an exciting finish to the 2023/2024 English Premier League season.
In a significant milestone, SuperSport Schools surpassed 1 million registered users on its app in August 2024, achieving nearly double its user base year-on-year. Over the first half of the fiscal year, the platform offered more than 35,000 hours of live and on-demand viewing content.
SuperSport’s documentary “Chasing the Sun 2” achieved remarkable success. It became the third most-viewed sports documentary, following “Chasing the Sun” and “Rassie.” The documentary was produced entirely through sponsorship and advertising.
MultiChoice introduced SuperSport Experiences in collaboration with DStv Rewards in another exciting development. This allowed loyal DStv Premium subscribers to purchase ‘Early Bird’ tickets for the Springboks’ home test matches, which quickly sold out.
Furthermore, MultiChoice has renewed or extended broadcasting rights for several major leagues and events, including the Premier Soccer League, La Liga, the men’s and women’s FIFA World Cup, HSBC Sevens, and World Athletics.
Not just limited to DStv, the strength of MultiChoice’s sports content also benefited its Showmax Premier League offering, which experimented with additional sports during the off-season of the English Premier League. The trial encompassed the FA Cup Final, various Euro 2024 matches, and a selection of Olympic content, yielding positive results. Consequently, Showmax included the current Premier Soccer League season in South Africa at no extra cost to subscribers starting September 2024.
