MultiChoice blames inflation as 243k subscribers dump service in six months

Multichoice Group, an African pay-TV operator has blamed inflation for the loss of 243,000 subscribers in six months by its Nigerian subsidiary between April and September 2024.

According to the financial result for the year ended September 30, 2024, published on Tuesday, MultiChoice disclosed that high cost of food, electricity, and petrol have forced many of its customers to ditch their decoders.

The company said Nigeria and Zambia recorded the largest share of subscriber loss.

It added that the pressure on its subscriber base in Rest of Africa (RoA) operations continued from the previous year leading to a loss of 566,000 subscribers across the operations in the six months under review.

“The group’s linear subscriber base declined by 11% or 1.8m subscribers YoY to 14.9m active subscribers at 30 September 2024,” MultiChoice said.

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“The loss in the Rest of Africa has been primarily due to the significant consumer pressure in Nigeria, where inflation has remained above 30% for the majority of the last 12 months and, more recently, due to extreme power disruptions in Zambia.

“Of this decline, 298k related to Zambia and 243k related to Nigeria, with remaining markets on the continent reflecting only a minor decline of 25k.”

On foreign exchange (FX) rate, the company said the continued depreciation of the naira against the dollar has resulted in further losses on non-quasi equity loans.

“The group held $11m in cash in Nigeria at period-end, down from $39m at end FY24, a consequence of consistent focus on remitting cash, the impact of translating the balance at the weaker naira and the write-off of the USD21m receivable relating to the cash held with Heritage Bank before its license was revoked and the bank was liquidated,” MultiChoice said.

By: Babajide Okeowo

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