Showmax has today announced developments regarding their products and they are geared for a better user interface and for better access to their product.
Showmax Mobile
First, they are launching Showmax Mobile in Kenya, Nigeria and South Africa. Showmax’s new mobile plan costs 50% of the standard Showmax package yet it still features 100% of the video content. Both the standard and mobile plans include live sport, magazine shows and sport documentaries too.
Showmax says the new plan is aimed at users who use smartphones and tablets to watch video content.
“This is all about an African service developing a solution that meets the needs of AFrican consumers. Customer feedback consistently points to local content and sport as some of the things people value most from Showmax,” Niclas Ekdahl, CEO of the Connected Video division of Multichoice was quoted as saying.
There are some differences between the Standard and Mobile plans on Showmax:
| Mobile | Standard | |
|---|---|---|
| Price per month | Kshs 375 | Kshs 750 |
| Watch on smartphone or tablet | Yes | Yes |
| Watch on smart TV and computer | No | Yes |
| HD streaming | No | Yes |
| TV series, movies, kids' shows | Yes | Yes |
| Sport | Yes | Yes |
| Concurrent streams | 1 | 2 |
| Cancel anytime | Yes | Yes |
| 14 day free trial | Yes | Yes |
| Chromecast and AirPlay | No | Yes |
| Number of devices | One | Five with 2 able to stream at the same time. |
As you can see, there are a number of caveats when you use Showmax Mobile. You can only use one device per account, you can’t stream in HD, no Chromecast support and you can’t view it on a smart TV. Some of the drawbacks make sense since it is essentially a mobile product. Showmax says that they capped it at SD resolution to help reduce data consumption.
Showmax has more plans for the Showmax Mobile product offering. In South Africa, they have a deal with Vodacom where you can get 2GB of data every month for streaming Showmax for R99 (Kshs 700) a month. The company says they are looking to launch similar offers in Kenya and Nigeria.
Revised User Interface Design
Showmax is also testing a revised user interface for their apps, mobile and the web. So what has changed? well you’ll know you have the new app when you are prompted to set up profiles.
Showmax says that the profile functionality is now more comprehensive and easier to use. Parental controls can be set universally and can be set per profile. There is also a dedicated kids section and improved ‘my lists’ functionality. They have also changed the overall look and feel where you can visibly see more content and surface them faster too.
Showmax says that they have rolled out the new changes to about 5% of their user base and will continue in batches.
