MultiChoice has fired a blow at incoming satellite TV provider, On Digital Media, by releasing its latest product, DSTV Lite, at R99 per month.
The industry expected the satellite monopoly to come up with a counter-product sometime this week, to compete with ODM's new Top TV. MultiChoice is also beefing up its other offerings with additional channels.
MultiChoice's move feeds into what communications minister Siphiwe Nyanda called the start of competition in the satellite TV market.
Speaking at Top TV's opening party last night, the minister said: “Not only will the advent of a new pay-TV channel bring more options for subscribers, it will also bring much needed economic relief to the consumer. With more competition comes a reduction in prices.”
MultiChoice recently increased the price of its premium offerings, and the R99 service seems to be something of a placation.
While ODM has made it to market first, there are still two other satellite providers expected to hit the market soon. Super5Media has been quietly preparing its burst onto the market, and this is expected to happen before the end of the year.
Religious-themed satellite provider Walking on Water is also expected to show face at some point; however, licensing troubles have stymied its route to market. These new providers will likely enter the market with competitive pricing, which will probably be countered again by MultiChoice.
For a comparison of available channels on Top TV and MultiChoice's R99 offers, click here.
Starting off
Despite MultiChoice's new offering, Top TV still leads in one important area. For full installation of satellite dish, decoder and labour, Top TV installers are only charging R499. MultiChoice does not have a similar offer.
The vultures are also already circling around Top TV, and its domains are being hijacked left, right and centre.
On Wednesday, a site called toptvinstallers.co.za came out with a R699 price for installation. The same registrant has also claimed Toptvgauteng, toptvcapetown and toptvdurban. ODM is looking into the registrant of these sites and will likely have them closed down soon.
Local is lekker
Top TV will have much work ahead if it, if it is to make more waves in the local market. The minister last night called on it to start working towards getting more local content into the offering.
“As the minister responsible for policy-making in the area of broadcasting, I take keen interest in seeing an increase in the use of locally produced content. In SA, we have a thriving production and creative industry that relies on the support of broadcasters like Top TV to showcase their work and, in turn, make a living,” he said.
The current offering falls short in the local content arena, with only Top Gospel and Top One canvassing South African content for the platform.
However, ODM has investment from the Industrial Development Corporation, which has now been tasked to spearhead the search for local content.
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