South Africa’s MultiChoice, the company that operates DSTv, a popular pay-TV service has revealed plans to lay off more than 2000 workers as it targets to restructure its operations. The retrenching exercise will see the majority of workers serving its call and walk-in customer care centres lose their jobs as the corporation streamlines its customer service delivery system.
The affected employees were notified of the development on June 21. The move has since been resisted the nation’s Information Communication and Technology Union (ICTU) that argues MultiChoice did not apprise it of the proposed layoffs..
According to the company, business has not been good thanks to the growth of video-on-demand services (VOD) such as Netflix that are cheaper and offer more services. What’s more, the DSTv owner says the number of customers who reach its call centres has dropped significantly as customers engage the customer via digital means such as social media correspondence. To this end, MultiChoice targets to address low-performing segments by offsetting the toll on its payroll
As mentioned, MultiChoice, which, according to EWN reported a 6% jump in profits in 2019 from the preceding financial year, continues to blame Netflix for its current woes. The firm has been pressuring regulators to introduce measures that will see Netflix, among other VOD apps compete favourably in the country. On the other hand, MultiChoice pricing model has been rigid for an extended period. This forced customers to drop the service for other products.
To counter the onslaught of VOD service, MultiChoice launched DSTv Now that allows customers to stream shows and sports events on their mobile devices.
