A new article from TechCentral caught my attention today. The headline? “Canal+ concedes Showmax not a commercial success”. That’s a big statement coming from the new majority shareholder of MultiChoice, and it carries some sobering implications for the future of Showmax — Africa’s homegrown video-on-demand (VOD) streaming service that has long positioned itself as the affordable digital-first alternative to Netflix and others across the continent.

From where I sit, as someone who has tracked the evolution of digital media and entertainment in Kenya and across Africa for well over two decades, this kind of public admission sends worrying signals — especially when paired with the broader financial turmoil and subscriber attrition that MultiChoice is facing across its Pay TV and streaming segments.

But is Showmax really a failure? Or is the problem simply a mismatch between expectations and strategy?

Showmax Was Never Meant To Be Another Netflix — And That’s OK

Let’s rewind a little. Showmax was never created to go head-to-head with global streaming giants in terms of scale, budgets, or even user experience. Instead, it was built as a more contextually grounded platform that offered African content, local languages, mobile-first access, and — critically — lower data consumption and pricing models tailored for emerging market realities.

It has long targeted the “affordable’ segment of African streaming, downloadable episodes for offline viewing, and integration with telcos like Safaricom for easier billing. That was smart. That made sense. And to be fair, it’s what has kept Showmax relatively sticky in markets like Kenya, Nigeria, and South Africa.

But it’s also a business model that’s hard to scale profitably in a landscape where:

• Data remains expensive or inconsistent for many users.
• The mobile screen is the primary screen, not the exception.
• Piracy and illegal IPTV streaming continue to eat into legitimate subscriber bases.
• Live sports — particularly the English Premier League (EPL) — remains the single most important driver of premium video consumption across Africa.

The Elephant In The Room: Commercial Viability vs Strategic Relevance

According to Canal+, Showmax is not yet commercially viable — and they’re not wrong. Even after its relaunch with revised pricing, a cleaner user experience (UX), and high-profile original content, the platform is still burning cash. But here’s the thing — strategic relevance doesn’t always look like short-term profit.

Showmax is an African-focussed platform with lots of African content, built for African mobile wallets and bandwidth. It represents a foothold in a digital future where MultiChoice can survive the inevitable sunset of satellite TV and legacy broadcast models. It’s also a rare attempt at creating a culturally resonant, youth-appealing brand in the digital streaming space — something most global platforms have struggled with across Africa.

If Canal+ sees Showmax only through the lens of profitability today, they may end up shuttering what could’ve been their most powerful digital transition asset for tomorrow.

What Canal+ Should Really Be Thinking About

Let me offer a perspective here — instead of considering possibly pulling the plug on Showmax, Canal+ should consider the following:

1. Shift to modular, pay-per-view pricing models: Let viewers pay KES 100 for a single football match, or KES 300 for a weekend of EPL access. Drop the bundles. Micro-transactions that create a ‘trickle up’ effect are how Africa consumes — just look at M-Pesa’s success in Kenya. 
2. Double down on mobile: Make the mobile Showmax app the flagship product. Optimise for low data, offline viewing, small screen UX, and regional payment integrations.
3. Leverage local content and community marketing: African content remains one of MultiChoice’s greatest strengths — amplify it through partnerships with creators, influencers, and even grassroots campaigns. Think community, not corporate.
4. Stop fighting piracy — outprice it: Illegal IPTV is thriving because it’s cheaper and easier. Showmax must outcompete it through convenience, price flexibility, and relevant content — not lawsuits and takedown requests.
5. Integrate Showmax into the wider MultiChoice offering: Offer Showmax as an add-on or streaming-first tier of DStv, not a separate standalone platform. Collapse the content silos. Let users pay for what they want.

In Conclusion: The Risk of Missing the Bigger Picture

Canal+ may be struggling to make the numbers work, but if they think short-term margins matter more than long-term market leadership, they risk killing the very thing that could’ve secured their digital dominance across Africa.

Showmax may not be a commercial success (yet), but it is a strategic imperative. It’s MultiChoice’s best chance of not just surviving — but thriving — in a future where streaming is king, mobile is everything, and African youth are the most important audience of all.

It’s time for a different kind of vision. One that sees Showmax not as a failed experiment, but as a work-in-progress platform that deserves a smarter business model — one that’s as uniquely African as the content it streams.

Let’s hope Canal+ doesn’t miss the plot.