Sub-Saharan Africa to add 9 million SVOD subscriptions

Africa SVOD to add 9 million subscriptions

Sub-Saharan Africa will have 16 million paying SVOD subscriptions by 2029, up from 7 million at end-2023. South Africa and Nigeria will supply 59% (9.4 million) of the region’s total. However, African SVOD penetration will still be low by 2029, with only 7.1% of TV households paying for at least one subscription – although this is up from 4.7% at end-2023.

Netflix will remain the SVOD market leader, with 6.9 million subscribers by 2029. Showmax will be the second largest platform with 3.7 million paying subscribers. With its roll-out expected to be limited to South Africa, Disney+ will only have 905,000 subscriptions by 2029.

Simon Murray, Principal Analyst at Digital TV Research, said: “SVOD is a battle between Netflix and regional player Showmax. Rich in local content and sports rights, Showmax now has access to NBCUniversal, Sony Pictures and HBO content. Showmax’s parent MultiChoice recently rejected a takeover bid from Canal Plus.”