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8 Things You Didn’t Know About Netflix Vs Showmax In Africa

8 Things You Didn’t Know About Netflix Vs Showmax In Africa

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Netflix vs Showmax is a battle that continues to rage on with an appetite for video on demand services growing in Africa.

Showmax is South Africa’s answer to Netflix, the global subscription based video streaming service that provides users with a wide variety of viewing thanks to an online catalogue of movies, series and other entertainment options.

Before Netflix officially entered the African market at the beginning of 2016, Naspers launched Showmax with a view to competing with the US-based streaming giant, which has over 65 million streaming customers globally.

While both streaming services have their advantages, a comparison of the two reveals a number of insights that one may not notice by considering only one and not the other.

We take a look at 8 things you may not know about Netflix in relation to Showmax on the African continent.

Source: Stuff, Fin24, MyBroadband, CNN, Mail&Guardian, MGAfrica, Showmax.

Netflix
Some people already had a taste of Netflix – techweez.com

Showmax got there first, sort of

Netflix only officially launched on the African continent in January 2016, so Showmax had the advantage in the market, having provided the service to South African customers since August 2015 when it launched. Some tech savvy consumers have experience Netflix before, however, as they would change their IP to appear as a US IP in order to access the service.

How to invest in Africa
Expansion throughout the African continent – linkedin.com

Expansion into Africa

While Netflix’s entry into the African market was completed all at once, with 54 African countries receiving access to the Netflix service, Showmax waited until May this year to expand into 36 African countries after launching in South Africa in August last year.

Netflix vs ShowMax
Image: mokoloprojects.org

Showmax is not continent-wide yet

Netflix expanded into 190 countries worldwide at the beginning of 2016, and that included all 54 countries in Africa. In comparison, Showmax is not yet available throughout the African continent, with 36 countries currently enjoying the streaming service. Crucially, Showmax is accessible in top economies Nigeria and Egypt at the moment.

catholiclane.com
How much do Africans pay for Showmax?

Netflix vs Showmax on price

The basic price for Showmax is R99 per month in South Africa, which works out to around $6,50 for the local service, while the comparable plan called Netflix Standard gives access to their streaming video content for $9.99 per month (which works out to be around R150).

Naspers Launching Video On Demand In South Africa
Netflix CEO Reed Hastings, foxbusiness.com

Range of content

The range of content on the two video streaming services is difficult to compare, as they offer various series and movies, with certain elements available on one and not the other. Netflix has some original series and shows that are not available on Showmax, while Showmax has the advantage with regards to regional and local content due to content licensing throughout Africa.

Showmax
Showmax is second best to Netflix in some ways – businesstech.co.za

Platform support and streaming quality

The platforms supported and general quality are two important elements for customers, and in both regards Netflix comes out on top. The US-based service lets customers choose lower-quality video for a cheaper price, or impeccable UHD resolution. Netflix also offers 5.1 surround sound. In terms of platform support Netflix apps appear on almost any connected devices, while Showmax needs time to reach that level of development.

ShowMax
Naspers owns Showmax. Photo: cnbcafrica.com

Showmax available outside of Africa

Showmax is not only available in Africa, as they offer content from Afrikaans television station kykNET in 28 countries including Australia, United Kingdom and United States, where large South African expat communities reside. ShowMax is now available in a total of 65 countries.

Thinkstock
There are other smaller competitors out there – Thinkstock

Other competitors

While the South African scenario sees local competitor Showmax going head to head with global giant Netflix, it is not as simple as that, as there are other international video streaming companies in the mix. These include OntapTV, MTN’s FrontRow and Times Media Group’s Vidi.