Watching satellite TV or catching up on shows and films on video-on-demand platforms is not cheap. Kenyans, for instance, have been watching satellite television for a very long time, in this case, DStv, which is offered by MultiChoice. DStv, as always, is popular because it doesn’t need its customers to have an internet connection to enjoy content (it has other products that can access DStv services via the internet). DStv is also the only pay TV platform that has a license to air live games from different parts of the world, which basically makes it a monopoly in several countries it serves. It has also been trying to catch up with video-on-demand apps that people tend to subscribe to, which is why it launched Showmax to compete with the likes of Netflix and others.
DStv has further been faulted for its high package price, especially for premium accounts that round up all content, and live matches such as the UEFA Champions League. Just last year, the platform increased its subscription fees, and it has done the same thing for 2023, starting in April.
So how much will you be paying to watch DStv then? Here are the new fees:
Note, we have included the current charges compared to what you will be paying a month from now.
| Subscription | Current price in KES | New price from April 2023 in KES | Difference in KES |
| Premium | 8900 | 9500 | 600 |
| Compact Plus | 5500 | 5900 | 400 |
| Compact | 3000 | 3300 | 300 |
| Family | 1600 | 1750 | 150 |
| Access | 1150 | 1250 | 100 |
The price adjustments have not only been done in Kenya but also in South Africa.
The Premium package is obviously and prohibitively expensive, and we are not sure how people are going to respond to the changes because a KES 600 price jump is not something people will let slide, bearing in mind that other products and services in the Kenyan market have also received a price hike thanks to inflation and other factors associated with the struggling economy.
Just the other day, Netflix adjusted its pricing for Kenya and Sub-Saharan Africa. The premium package now costs KES 1100, down from KES 1450. And while Netflix does not offer live game streams and TV, it allows customers to watch content on up to four active screens, whereas DStv is limited to just one screen.
