African SVOD to hit 10 million in 2023

Subscription video-on-demand users in sub-Saharan Africa will number 10 million by 2023, according to Digital TV Research.

According to the research outfit’s Sub-Saharan Africa OTT TV & Video Forecasts report, the number of SVOD subscribers will rise from 1.56 million at the end of last year to 9.99 million across 35 countries by 2023.

SVOD revenues will remain low, however, reaching US$775 million (€665 million) by 2023 thanks to the low price of a number of services.

South Africa will remain the SVOD leader in the region, with an estimated 3.37 million subscribers by 2023, followed by Nigeria with 2.61 million. The pair together will account for 60% of the region’s SVOD customers by that date, down from 74% last year, with other countries growing faster from a smaller base.

The top six platforms, led by Netflix, Showmax and iRoko, accounted for 90% of SVOD customers at the end of last year, which will remain the case in 2023, according to Digital TV Research.

Netflix will account for 40% of the overall market by that date, with an estimated 4.03 million homes, according to the research outfit.

“Market dynamics have shifted over the last year. There have been many fewer platform launches, especially on a country level. Furthermore, several multinational players are expected to rein in their ambitions whereas Netflix has consolidated its market leadership,” said principal analyst Simon Murray.

“We believe that iRoko will concentrate mostly on West Africa. A significant stake in Iflix was sold to Econet, which we believe will mean more focus on Eastern and Southern Africa. Multichoice announced that Showmax will be given free to premium DStv subscribers across Africa, with Compact subscribers offered Showmax for half price.”