MultiChoice and Canal+ have announced that they will dump streaming service Showmax after ten years due to poor financial performance.
Founded in August 2015, Showmax brought to live original TV shows such as The Wife, Adulting, Blood Psalms, Somizi & Mohale: The Union, The Real Housewives of Durban, Red Ink, Youngins, The Mommy Club and more.
The discontinuation of the service will not lead to retrenchments, said MultiChoice in a statement released on Thursday morning. It still not clear when the cancellation will come into effect for the viewers.
Multichoice said the decision came after a comprehensive review of its streaming activities.
“This decision was made by the Showmax Board of Directors and reflects the continued focus of MultiChoice, a CANAL+ Company, on financial discipline and investment optimisation, in an increasingly competitive and capital-intensive global streaming environment. The substantial annual losses experienced by the Showmax business have proved unsustainable,” said MultiChoice.
It further said the decision to phase out Showmax reflects their focus on building a sustainable, competitive business for the long term in an increasingly demanding global streaming environment.
“The decision to discontinue Showmax services will not involve any retrenchments. The Group will be engaging and supporting employees through various transition options. This evolution is also consistent with the ambition of MultiChoice, a CANAL+ Company, to deploy its in-house large-scale streaming platform capable of meeting the expectations of African and international consumers.”
MultiChoice said further details regarding their expanded content offering and platform upgrades will be shared in due course.
Sowetan
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