Canal+ told investors on Thursday that MultiChoice revenue fell 3% on a like-for-like basis in the nine months to September. South Africa drove the DStv revenue fall, with lower subscription income at home. The French owner says its turnaround is on track. Its numbers, which omit subscriber counts, make that hard to verify.
MultiChoice Revenue Falls 3% as South Africa Drags
Canal+, which took control of MultiChoice in September 2025, reported MultiChoice revenue of €1.81 billion. That is up 0.4% on a reported basis. The company credits a material positive currency effect, not growth. Higher revenue in most other English-speaking markets only partly offset the South African slide.
The decline eased to 2% in the third quarter from 3.4% in the first half, according to TechCentral. Canal+ attributed part of that improvement to favourable comparisons with last year’s sporting calendar. The contrast with the rest of the group is sharp. Excluding MultiChoice, Canal+ grew Africa and Asia revenue 10.2% like for like, according to MyBroadband.
Currency and Football Flatter the Numbers
Canal+ gave no subscriber figures. It said only that its African and Asian subscriber base normalised in the third quarter after a World Cup boost in the first half. The pattern repeats from the interim results, when Canal+ withheld DStv’s subscriber count, MyBroadband reported.
Merchant West portfolio manager Izak van Niekerk argues that the World Cup, which MultiChoice offered on its cheapest DStv Access package, likely drew low-margin subscribers. That would flatter revenue without fixing the base.
The backdrop is stark. MultiChoice revenue fell 6% to €2.4 billion in 2025, and its base shrank from 14.9 million to 14.4 million subscribers, BusinessTech reported. Canal+ had already warned of a €140 million hit in 2026 from subscriber inertia.
Canal+ Bets on Simpler DStv Packages
On 17 September, DStv replaced its Access, Family and Compact packages in South Africa with Starter, Select and Sports. It also added a Movies & Series tier below Premium. Canal+ chief executive Maxime Saada said the group is “making good progress with the MultiChoice turnaround plan.” The relaunch landed two weeks before quarter-end, so the figures say little about whether it works.
Sport is the second bet. Canal+ holds exclusive rights to all Uefa men’s club competitions in more than 40 African countries from 2027 to 2031, plus the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations. Showmax offers a cautionary tale. Canal+ shut it at the end of April after a R4.9 billion trading loss in the year to March 2025, TechCentral notes.
Nigeria and Free Video Raise the Stakes
Nigeria shows what is at risk. DStv and GOtv lost 1.4 million Nigerian subscribers between March 2023 and March 2025. Nigerian revenue fell 44%, from $355.93 million in 2024 to $197.74 million in 2025, BusinessDay reported. MultiChoice has since skipped its usual April price rise for 2026, according to Technext, while Compact still costs ₦19,000 and Premium ₦44,500 a month, according to tech.africa.
The rival is free. A Señal News forecast projects YouTube will earn $128 million in Nigerian advertising in 2026, while Netflix grows from 1.2 million to 1.9 million Nigerian subscribers over the forecast period. Nigerian creators already earn serious money there: MarkAngel Comedy has banked about $4.1 million over its lifetime, according to past TechMoonshot reporting. YouTube raises its Partner Program thresholds from February 2027, as TechMoonshot reported in August, but the trading update offers no sign that Canal+ has won those viewers back.
What to Watch After the DStv Revenue Fall
Three tests will show whether the turnaround is real. Canal+ must restore subscriber disclosure when it reports full-year results. The new South African packages must lift revenue in the fourth quarter without a football tournament to help. And the rollout across English- and Portuguese-speaking Africa, promised over the coming months, must reach Nigeria and Kenya at prices that match local incomes.
The DStv revenue fall has slowed. Canal+ has yet to show it has stopped.
