African pay TV giant MultiChoice Group and Comcast’s NBCUniversal and Sky on Thursday unveiled a partnership that “will bring some of the world’s best content and technology to streaming customers across MultiChoice’s 50-market footprint in sub-Saharan Africa at a time when Africa is approaching an inflection point in terms of broadband connectivity and affordability.”
They will form the new Showmax group, which will be 70 percent owned by MultiChoice and 30 percent owned by NBCUniversal. “It will build on Showmax’s success to date and aim to create the leading streaming service in Africa,” the companies said. “Powered by Peacock’s leading, globally-scaled technology, Showmax subscribers will have access to an extensive premium content portfolio, bringing African audiences the best of local and international programming.”
Further details about the new Showmax service, including launch date, content and pricing will be announced at a later date.
The streaming service will combine MultiChoice’s growing investment in local content with international content licensed from NBCUniversal and Sky, third-party content from HBO, Warner Brothers International, Sony and others, as well as live English Premier League (EPL) soccer matches. “The partnership will also provide access to all the best African content, such as Showmax Originals and local content from MultiChoice’s proprietary channels, including Mzansi Magic, Africa Magic and Maisha Magic.”
NBCUniversal and Sky will provide ongoing support through the licensing of both technology and content, the partners highlighted.
“We launched Showmax as the first African streaming service in 2015 and are extremely proud of its success to date,” said Calvo Mawela, CEO of MultiChoice. “This agreement represents a great opportunity for our Showmax team to scale even greater heights by working with a leading global player in Comcast and its subsidiaries. The new business venture deepens an already strong relationship.”
Dana Strong, group CEO of Sky, said: “This new collaboration in streaming and content with MultiChoice, NBCUniversal, and Sky takes our partnership to the next level in one of the world’s most vibrant, fastest-growing markets. Last year, we announced MultiChoice as a customer of the Sky Glass platform, and now we are excited to help innovate its Showmax streaming service.”
Matt Strauss, chairman, direct-to-consumer & international at NBCUniversal, added: “This partnership is an incredible opportunity to further scale the global presence of Peacock’s world-class streaming technology, as well as to introduce millions of new customers to extensive premium content from NBCUniversal and Sky’s stellar entertainment brands.”
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