How much money MultiChoice makes per subscriber each month

MultiChoice Group (MCG), the operator of DStv, has published its financial results for the year ended March 2022, showing that it grew its 90-day active subscriber base by 900,000 to close the year on 21.8 million subscribers.

The 90-day subscriber base is split between 12.8 million subscribers (59%) in the Rest of Africa (RoA) and 9 million (41%) in South Africa.

Multichoice said it was pleased that the South African business reached the nine million subscriber milestone, but growth rates were subdued due to the tough ongoing economic environment and elevated prior year numbers as consumers prioritised video entertainment during the Covid-19-related lockdowns, the group said.

“The South African business faced an increasingly difficult consumer climate, with FY22 growth rates impacted by rising unemployment levels, intermittent load shedding and a short disruption caused by the tragic July riots in Durban and Johannesburg.

“Year-on-year comparisons, reflecting muted growth of 1% or 100,000 subscribers on a 90-day active basis, were also distorted by the boost to prior year subscriptions when consumers prioritised video entertainment services during strict Covid-19-related lockdowns.”

As a result of these and other factors, MultiChoice noted that the monthly 90-day average revenue per user (ARPU) dropped from R277 to R269.

“Revenue increased 4% to R35.6 billion. This was attributed to a R0.8 billion recovery in advertising revenue and a 1% increase in subscription revenues, driven by subscriber growth in the mass market and the uplift from annual price increases. The return of live sport and other value-adding initiatives contributed to reducing churn on Premium relative to the prior year.”

Multichoice added that the 3% drop in ARPU is less than prior years and was underpinned by the improved Premium trend, annual price increases and a partial recovery in commercial subscription revenues.

The group said it will continue to focus on and drive the penetration of its video entertainment services across the African continent, offering customers an ‘array of unique and rich media content in a convenient and cost-effective way’.

“More specifically, the year ahead will see the group increasing its investment in local content, targeting an allocation of 50% of total general entertainment spend by 2024.

“As a key differentiator, local content and select sporting events such as the English Premier league, UEFA Champions League and the 2022 FIFA World Cup will contribute to the uptake of the group’s linear and streaming services.”

Read: Government plans to build a new R2.5 billion tech industry in South Africa – in the next 3 years