Showmax has today confirmed key dates marking the end of the streaming service that has operated across 44 markets in Sub-Saharan Africa for the past 11 years.
In an email sent to subscribers on Wednesday evening, the platform outlined a phased wind-down of its current service, with 31 March 2026 set as the final day for subscription renewals and voucher redemptions. From 1 April 2026, new subscriptions and renewals will no longer be available.
Existing subscribers will continue watching content until their subscription expires, or until the end of April 2026, whichever comes first.
This new update provides the clearest consumer-facing timeline yet, following the announcement roughly two weeks ago that Canal+ would shut down Showmax, citing “unacceptable” losses at the African streamer as it sought cost-saving measures.
That announcement sent shockwaves across the industry, from Nairobi to Lagos to Johannesburg, with filmmakers and actors raising concerns over the loss of a key African platform that had, for over a decade, commissioned and amplified local storytelling at scale.
At the same time, the announcement was also met with uncertainty, particularly due to the absence of a clear shutdown timeline or transition plan for subscribers.
Even now, some subscribers have already begun expressing frustration over the short transition window. “It’s really annoying how little time is left,” one subscriber and regular Showmax viewer said in a WhatsApp message.
Showmax Originals will now move to DStv Stream, positioning it as MultiChoice’s central hub for streaming offering, at least for now.
“Showmax is starting a new chapter, and your favourite shows are getting a shiny new home on DStv Stream,” the company said in the email.
But the language used in the communication also suggests that there is more to come. In stating that the content will join “a bigger world of entertainment, all in one place,” MultiChoice hints at a broader consolidation strategy — one that could see Canal+ and MultiChoice’s currently fragmented digital products folded into a more unified streaming ecosystem. There have been reports that Canal+ is exploring a single “super app”, one to rule them all, though this remains unconfirmed at this stage.
In the meantime, it remains unclear whether Showmax users will be migrated to DStv Stream, and what that process would look like in terms of pricing, packaging and access, especially given the current price disparity between the two services.
