Multichoice-owned DSTV continues to haemorrhage subscribers in the Kenyan market. Its decoder-reliant segment closed 2025 with 270,503 subscribers, with this number dropping to 248,053 by the end of March 2026.
This loss of 22,450 subscribers, an 8.3 per cent quarterly decline, represented the most significant absolute loss among all pay TV operators in the period.
Percentage-wise, GoTV, which MultiChoice operates as a lower-tier offering, suffered a subscriber loss almost mirroring DSTV. Its customer base numbers fell 8.0 per cent, losing 35,362 of its subscribers to end March at 405,013 subscribers.
The trend where the Canal+ owned South African company is losing its traditional television users continues from last year. In 2025, its two broadcast services in the Kenyan market lost a combined 3,338,641 customers.
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Exodus from pay TV services is not exclusive to Multichoice in Kenya. Wananchi Group’s Zuku lost 31,848 subscribers during the last quarter. This drop represents 13.5%, falling from 236,357 to 204,509.
Not all pay TV operators suffered subscription declines. Azam TV added 1,798 subscribers (+5.3%) to reach 36,031, while StarTimes grew to 681,170, gaining 2,724 subscribers (+0.4%).
| Performance | Broadcaster | Dec-25 Subscribers | Mar-26 Subscribers | Quarterly Variation (%) |
| Growers | Azam | 34,233 | 36,031 | +5.3% |
| Star Times | 678,446 | 681,170 | +0.4% | |
| Losers | Go TV | 440,375 | 405,013 | -8.0% |
| MultiChoice (DSTV) | 270,503 | 248,053 | -8.3% | |
| Wananchi (Zuku) | 236,357 | 204,509 | -13.5% |
Overall, Kenya lost 85,177 pay-TV subscribers between January and March 2026.
According to the Communications Authority of Kenya (CA)’s latest report, this 5.1 per cent quarterly decline brought the total market down to 1.58 million active subscriptions.
