VIU Looking To Become The Third Broadcaster To Rival With eExtra's Kuiertyd

VIU is an Asian based streaming service that is formed as part of a joint venture with PCCW Media Limited and French broadcaster Canal+. Residing in more than 20 countries, VIU is estimated to have reached over 60 million users as the streamer plans to build up on its content slate.

Canal+ which serves as partner is currently in pursuit of Showmax's parent company MultiChoice after garnering stakes is now sitting at 45%. The plan should this acquisition succeed is to create an African powerhouse that can take on giants like Disney and Netflix. 

Another plan on the cards would be introducing international content in local languages particularly Afrikaans. eMedia Investments has been doing this since 2018 and had since then become popular within South Africa literally doubling the viewership of SABC 2's 7de Laan.

KykNET became eMedia Investments' first competitor in such pursuit as this offering was rolled out through KykNET&Kie. Both of which are owned by MultiChoice, with Canal+ looking to acquire this could lead to additional programming as the channel had simplified this offering in May.

Although Showmax had already been producing Afrikaans content for their audiences none of which rival with shows like Doodsondes or Sommerdahl Moorde. But rather the niche part of Kuiertyd with only a variant of these viewers with Bôll And Ôll and Ja, Daddy Kan Lekker Eet.

It will be interesting to see how these shows will do in terms of distribution cause with Canal+ owning KykNET they could use it promote these endeavors. Another scenario would be shopping these series to other broadcasters like the SABC since they are technically insolvent. 

The public broadcaster has been looking at cost cutting measures aside from possibly selling SABC 3 another was reducing budget costs for shows like Muvhango. VIU has been the official distributor to some of their shows like Uzalo and Skeem Saam.

Press statement about the inclusion of dubbed programming 

The demand for foreign content is so great that part of Viu’s strategy for the next year is to dub more and more of these titles into South African languages to make them more accessible.

While K-dramas are geared more towards English speakers, Turkish content is more aligned with Afrikaans audiences. Kelly said part of the growth in demand for Turkish content is due to the gap left by long-running Afrikaans shows like 7de Laan reaching end of life.

For Viu, the dubbing of content in Afrikaans gives the company an opportunity to use internationally sourced content to contribute to the local economy by employing local vocal talent. “The Turks are doing well in TV production, particularly in the long-running dramas. We work with some of the best dubbing providers in the country and we want to make sure we don’t do our audience a disservice in that,” said Kelly.

Showmax And VIU Are Likely To Remain Unscathed In Canal+'s Pursuit Of MultiChoice

VIU is an Asian based streaming service that is formed as part of a joint venture with PCCW Media Limited and French broadcaster Canal+. Residing in more than 20 countries, VIU is estimated to have reached over 60 million users as the streamer plans to build up on its content slate.

Canal+ which serves as partner is currently in pursuit of Showmax's parent company MultiChoice after garnering stakes is now sitting at 45%. The plan should this acquisition succeed is to create an African powerhouse that can take on giants like Disney and Netflix. 

Of course, one of those burning questions is how VIU and Showmax will be able to co-exist seeing as they'll have the same owner - Canal+. Both have been producing content locally and licensing from international studios and the fear here is that this acquisition could reduce that. 

But that may not be the case here exactly although Canal+ is obtaining MultiChoice the only way this deal could move forward would be the assistance of another business. Canal+ is still trying to build its stake in VIU and its very unlikely that they'd pursue full ownership. 

If anything one can only estimate that similar to France, Canal+ is probably trying to do what MultiChoice has with SABC News and eNCA and flex their dominance. VIU and Showmax will most definitely be treated as individual broadcasters in the streaming regime. 

VIU is constrained to Asia, Middle East and South Africa and Showmax extends to other parts of Africa. So content wise, there may not be that much changes of course nothing can be guaranteed here I can imagine select content from M-Net most probably popping up there.

Then there's that whole matter with the SABC, how different will VIU's relationship be by then when its parent company acquires its rival. Do these just fall off the schedule in favor of M-Net's local offering or does this offering remain constraint on separate platforms.

Canal+ had been producing content through StudioCanal and with MultiChoice it plans to increase local investment. Showmax instead of being a platform with content from M-Net, NBC and so forth switches to become some M-Net based streaming service with select international content on VIU.

If there's one thing that was kind of speculated for sometime was Canal+ looking to possibly trim or lessen some of the agreements put in place for content. In place of reduced international offering would be content generated from France and parts of Europe.

Canal+ Increases Stake In Asian Streamer VIU To 36,8% With The Option To Get Majority Ownership

French media and telecom conglomerate Vivendi’s pay-TV unit Canal+ Group has increased its stake in Asian streamer Viu to 36.8 percent, the company said on Thursday.

“After satisfaction of key business milestones, Canal+ Group has released the last installment of its $300 million staggered investment,” it explained. “A further investment, at Canal+ election, could result in an increase of Canal+’s stake in Viu to 51 percent.”

The company didn’t immediately outline what would be needed for it to make such a decision to go for a majority stake in the Hong Kong-based video streamer. But it did highlight its interest in Asia. “This investment is a renewed testimony to Canal+’s commitment to develop Asia as one of the group’s growth engines and underlines Canal+’s confidence in Viu and its team.”

Canal+ first bought into Viu, led by CEO Janice Lee, in a June 2023 deal with Hong Kong telecom powerhouse PCCW Group, taking a 26.1 percent stake. As part of that deal, Canal+ secured the option of paying an additional sum to increase its stake to a 51 percent majority. 

Launched in 2015 with backing from PCCW, Viu’s video service offers both advertising and subscription-supported options in 16 territories in Asia, the Middle East and South Africa. When it unveiled the Canal+ deal last year, he company said it had more than 66 million monthly active users and 12 million paid subscribers, the bulk of which is believed to be based in Asia. Viu has specialized in licensing and producing original Korean content, but it also creates original content in Southeast Asian territories including Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia.  

Canal+ has 26.4 million subscribers worldwide, including 17.1 million in Europe, 8.1 million in Africa and 1.2 million in the Asia-Pacific region. Beyond its investment in Viu, it is also the largest shareholder in African pay-TV giant MultiChoice and in Viaplay, the Scandinavian pay-TV and streaming company. Earlier this year, it also took a stake in leading Senegalese production company Marodi TV.

Possible Takeover: Canal+'s Investment In Viu Currently Stands At Approximately $300m, With The Option To Increase Its Stake To 50% Retained

France’s pay-TV giant Canal+ has ramped up its investment in PCCW’s pan-regional OTT service Viu, bringing its stake in the company to almost 30%. This development follows Canal+’s previous deal struck last year, where it acquired a 26% stake in Viu, marking a significant step in a $300m staged investment plan. The agreement provides Canal+ with the option to potentially acquire a majority (51%) stake in Viu in the future.

Viu, renowned for its extensive Korean content offering, operates across Asia, the Middle East, and South Africa, boasting over 66m monthly active users and 12m paid subscribers. Notably, its lineup includes popular shows like Nenek Bongkok Tiga.

Last year, media research group Omdia highlighted Viu’s dominance in South-Eastern Asia’s OTT video landscape, capturing a 23% market share in online video subscriptions, outpacing competitors such as Disney+ Hotstar and Netflix.

Since its inception in 2016, PCCW-owned streaming service Viu has solidified its position in the region through a strategic focus on providing Asian and localised content, alongside its own Viu Original series. Its subscription and advertising revenue surged significantly last year, with total revenue increasing by 27% and paid subscribers growing by 10% to reach 13.4m. Viu’s subscription revenue witnessed a remarkable 32% surge, attributed to both subscriber growth and pricing adjustments in selected markets.

Viu’s success is further underscored by a 15% increase in advertising revenue and a substantial user base of 62.4m active users by the end of 2023, along with soaring streaming minutes.

Canal+’s enhanced investment in Viu reflects its strategic vision to capitalise on the burgeoning OTT market and tap into Viu’s strong foothold in the Asian and pan-regional streaming landscape, positioning both companies for continued growth and success in the dynamic digital entertainment industry.

Development Alert: uBettina Wethu Cancelled After 3 Seasons On SABC 1, Revived For A Season 4 On e.tv And VIU

A few months ago, it was learnt by the public broadcaster that 7de Laan would end their 26 year run on SABC 2 with the last episode slated for 26 December 2023. Despite being one of the few shows reel in a million viewers SABC can't afford to keep it on the air.

It was also learnt that the public broadcaster that more shows (including ones as popular as 7de Laan) would get the boot. As seen this various media outlets, uBettina Wethu will be ending it's run on SABC 1 with a fourth season slated for e.tv in the coming week.

Based on the Colombian drama Betty Y Soy, uBettina Wethu followed a naïve rural girl who gets a job working for one of Johannesburg's most eligible bachelors. Determined to take charge of her life, she embraces strategic decision-making, self-discovery, and personal growth.

The series became a rating success on SABC 1 but amidst its debut on e.tv, the viewership began to plunge and following e.tv's induction the show is nowhere to be seen on TAMS top 20 likely due to its telecast on SABC 1 which kind of puts the show in a precarious position.

Seeing as the show would depart on SABC 1 and e.tv had spent most of the year rehashing past episodes. Could the fourth season be its last as not a lot of marketing being poured into this show and most consumers would probably think that e.tv is rehashing it for the rest of 2023.

Now that we know that uBettina Wethu was the next program by the public broadcaster to get the boot. Could Takalani Sesame be next as eMedia Investments had scooped it up for their linear platforms during the year and the public broadcaster is reviewing each asset.

Canal+ To Acquire A 26% Stake In Hong Kong Based Streaming Platform VIU

PCCW and Canal+ have announced a strategic partnership through which the French media giant will become a significant minority shareholder in PCCW’s Asian streaming service Viu.

Canal+ will make a staggered investment of $300M in Viu, including an initial investment of $200M, resulting in a 26.1% stake. It also has an option to make a further investment and turn that stake into a controlling 51%.

In a statement, Canal+ talked expansion opportunities and plans to collaborate with Viu on premium production:

During the year, the French company expanded their stake in MultiChoice beyond 30%. This move similar to VIU raises speculation of a possible takeover and should that be the case one has to wonder what would become of Showmax and VIU in South Africa if it's operated by Canal+.

"This new strategic partnership will enable the further growth of Viu, leveraging the global strength and expertise of Canal+ through various initiatives including collaboration on premium productions and content creation, expansion of global market reach for Viu, and continual user experience improvement. The partnership will allow Canal+ to take a major step in developing Asia as its next growth engine.”

Viu is one of Asia’s leading streamers with more than 66 million monthly active users (MAU) and 12 million paid subscribers across Asia, the Middle East and South Africa. The service, which operates a combined AVOD and SVOD model, consistently ranks as the top streamer in terms of MAUs across Southeast Asia and second in terms of subscribers.

It produces a wide range of local-language drama series and lifestyle programming, with a focus on Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia, and was a first mover in the acquisition of Korean content. In 2022, Viu reported $250M in revenue, representing growth of 36% year over year.

Maxime Saada, Canal+ Group CEO, said: “Canal+ already has leading market positions in Europe and Africa. We are now looking forward to developing Asia as an additional growth engine for the group. Our investment in Viu is a major step towards achieving this goal. Viu is already a business with scale, with its hybrid AVOD and SVOD business model and focus on local content, it has all the ingredients to deliver superior growth and continue to be a leading service in the region and beyond.

Janice Lee, Viu CEO and PCCW Media Managing Director, said: “When we launched Viu, we had set our sights on creating and transforming our media business into an international play by tapping into larger addressable markets in Southeast Asia, the Middle East, and South Africa. Having created a robust streaming business, we are excited to have the addition of Canal+ as a strategic investor to further accelerate growth by drawing on Canal+’s global strength in premium productions, content creation and distribution expertise.”

Could VIU Be The Next Streaming Service To Shut Down In South Africa?

Three years ago, South African viewers were introduced to VIU a brand new streaming service and also PCCW's second attempt at in the streaming game following the termination of OnTapTV.

For those who weren't present at the time, the brand failed to give the media specific details on the content viewed on the platform but ramped up partnerships with eMedia Investments and the SABC for some of its content part of which led to its relevancy.

Last year, the brand got into a brawl with eMedia Investments regarding the agreement for various local productions seen on e.tv such as Scandal and Imbewu as eMedia failed to hold their end of the bargain.

According to VIU at the time, consumers were alarmed to see that the content wasn't available on the platform as the e.tv productions had a following for which impacted their subscriber base with the brand set to lose the content to eVOD by 2024.

During the month, SABC viewers were alarmed to see that the public broadcaster recently launched SABC+ is missing several ties as their packaged exclusively by VIU with consumers having to wait until a certain timeframe to get access to the remaining content.

VIU was a bridge between both these parties and as seen now both of them now offer their own OTT platforms which puts the streamer in the very precarious position as most of the consumer base are big fans of the local providers.

Sure, VIU has a lot to offer outside these two with various content from BBC Studios alongside Crime + Investigation from A+E Networks. But is that enough to guarantee success for the platform I honestly doubt it.

South Africa had a various streamers such as A+E Networks' Acorn TV, Cell C's Black, Vodacom's Red and Telkom's TelkomOne streaming service all of which had a similar trait to VIU which includes bundling a lot of third party content and less to no original content - all of which have been dusted.

Now questions amount to how the future of the streamer as they keep sourcing out more and more content kind of like how abovementioned did before closing down.

Reminder: VIU's Contract With eMedia Investments Set To Expire In 2024

Since 2019, VIU an Asian based streaming service has been operating in South Africa and at the time not much was known about the platform as they basked on the existing free-to-air offering from the SABC and e.tv through a contractual agreement.

The platform featured a variety of Indian, Asian and Korean content which by the way match the existing offering on StarSat and Openview deeming it a useful alternative to fans of the content.

Last year, eMedia Investments and VIU got into a legal brawl as eMedia accused the brand of pirating exclusive shows Scandal, Imbewu and Rhythm City to Philosopher which houses several local dramas like Uzalo, Generations and 7de Laan.

 

 

From court's ruling:

"The ineluctable conclusion is that e.tv engineered a contrived cancellation of Vuclip's licensing agreements to gain access to exclusive content, which was exclusively licensed to Vuclip, but which e.tv wished to broadcast on its own platform," the court documents state.

Since the ruling Scandal and Imbewu are no longer available on eVOD and remain exclusive to VIU as Rhythm City was cancelled at the time.

With VIU's contract being valid for another 2 years, the brand may want to look at alternatives or try to build as much relevancy to the market by the means of original content and there's several local studios some of which small which VIU could perhaps funnel their content.

The Current Status Of TV Licence In South Africa And The Rest Of The World + Other Matters

South Africans who watch video streaming services like Netflix or pay-TV services like DStv or StarSat and who don't even watch or use the services of the South African public broadcaster could be forced to pay a SABC TV licence fee like a compulsory "traffic fine" - even if they don't use a TV, the SABC or just watch content on devices like laptops and tablets.

This is the latest plan of the financially struggling South African public broadcaster to prop up its finances, with Pinky Kekana, South Africa's deputy communications minister, who told parliament's portfolio committee on communications on Tuesday morning that the SABC wants to broaden the definition of the existing mandatory SABC TV licence that is payable by people with a TV set.

There's about 27 other countries that still do TV licences followed by 25 countries that abolished it and make their revenue through commercial sales, advertising, tax and pay or free-to-air platforms (which is what SABC is proposing). Then there's 11 other countries that never had a TV licence some of them don't have a national broadcaster (e.g. SABC, BBC), some are funded by private companies (e.g. e.tv), some rely on advertising, grants and government funds.

MUST CARRY RULE
The SABC wants the government to remove the must carry clause on their channels since it benefits other platforms as they don't pay a cent for their channels.

SPORTS
SABC wants national sports to be available to them at a very affordable price.

If SABC wants to charge people TV licence they could have added it onto our taxes regardless most people using DStv or OpenView don't watch their channels since they lack redeeming quality. If the government does abolish the must-carry regulation it means all platforms will likely do away with SABC 1-3 or have less SABC channels on their platform.

I know most people don't watch their channels but for the people that rely on their channels, what are the chances that these platforms will indeed do away with SABC entirely. Knowing some providers they're likely to keep only 1 or 2 out of the 3 channels.

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