DStv To Launch Standalone Streaming Only Service

DStv users may be saying goodbye to the old dish and decoder and welcoming a new, more laid-back streaming offering as MultiChoice Group is looking to launch its standalone streaming product by the end of its financial year in March 2020 according to new reports. The company offers their well known DStv satellite service and they have a huge presence in Africa.

MultiChoice already offers DStv Now which is a service that DStv customers can catch up with content from DStv on the go, the service can be accessed on a computer or on mobile. The catch, however, is you have to have a decoder and dish to connect your account with DStv now since the service requires a direct-to-home link to a satellite dish.

According to TechCentral, Connected Video CEO of MultiChoice Niclas Ekdahl says the company has made significant progress in developing the dishless offering — which will use customers’ broadband connections rather than satellite for delivery — and will soon open it to external testers.

The launch of the streaming-only offering will be a significant shift for a company that launched as a satellite direct-to-home (DTH) pay-television operator 24 years ago. Users will now enjoy a more streaming-friendly approach since the new service will offer a more on-demand viewing capability, this means viewers get to watch what they want, when they want, instead of simply watching what is already scheduled to show on the usual DStv and DStv Now offering.

Multichoice plans maybe to just improve on the already available DStv now. Making DStv Now a standalone service could go a long way as the company looks to penetrate this new streaming market. The company already has Showmax which the company has revealed recorded a 19% year on year increase in average hours watched. This kind of growth is what MultiChoice is looking to capitalize on give competitors like Netflix a run for their money.