Canal+ Unveils €100m Plan to Revive MultiChoice Amid Subscriber Decline

French media giant Canal+ has unveiled a €100 million investment plan aimed at reviving growth at MultiChoice Group, the African pay-TV company behind DStv and GOtv.

The announcement was made as part of Canal+’s 2025 financial results, released on Wednesday, following its full acquisition of MultiChoice late last year.

According to the results, MultiChoice experienced a decline in both subscribers and revenue in 2025, reflecting economic pressures across several of its key markets, including Nigeria.

Subscriber and revenue decline

Canal+ revealed that MultiChoice ended 2025 with 14.4 million subscribers, down from 14.9 million recorded in 2024.

The company’s revenue fell 6% to €2.4 billion, while adjusted earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) declined 14% to €159 million.

In the report, Canal+ attributed the downturn to a mix of economic pressures and strategic challenges.

“After experiencing impressive growth from 2010 to 2023, MultiChoice has faced challenges since the combined effects of macroeconomic factors — such as currency devaluation in Nigeria and power cuts — alongside a difficult transition to OTT and strong inflation across most cost items, particularly content,” the company said.

It added that earlier measures introduced by MultiChoice, including price increases and reductions in subscriber acquisition subsidies, helped manage costs but also contributed to subscriber losses.

€100 million growth plan

Looking ahead, Canal+ warned that MultiChoice could face a €140 million negative impact in 2026, driven by continued subscriber attrition and rising operational costs.

To reverse the trend, the French broadcaster plans to invest around €100 million in a growth initiative designed to restart subscriber expansion across African markets.

As part of the strategy, the company plans to recruit more than 1,000 sales staff across the continent, shifting MultiChoice toward a more aggressive, sales-driven distribution model aimed at boosting subscriptions.

Backstory: Canal+ takeover

The development follows Canal+’s full acquisition of MultiChoice, a transaction that significantly expanded the French media company’s global footprint in pay television and streaming.

The deal, completed in September 2025, was valued at approximately $3 billion.

Following the takeover, the combined group now serves more than 40 million subscribers across nearly 70 countries spanning Africa, Europe, and Asia, while employing about 17,000 people globally.

Canal+ has also said it will present a detailed integration strategy and growth roadmap during a strategic update scheduled for the first quarter of 2026.

What you should know

Earlier this month, reports indicated that Canal+ may discontinue Showmax, the streaming platform previously operated by MultiChoice, as part of broader cost-cutting efforts.

Showmax, launched in 2015, was designed as a pan-African streaming platform competing with global services such as Netflix, Apple TV+, Amazon Prime Video, and Disney+.

However, the service struggled to achieve profitability. In its final financial report before the Canal+ takeover, MultiChoice disclosed that trading losses from Showmax had expanded by 88%, even as revenue from the platform declined.