DStv dropping two channels
MultiChoice has confirmed it will shut down two DStv channels that form part of its M-Net business at the end of the month.
MyBroadband recently reported that DStv had put up a message on the CineMagic channel on EasyView notifying subscribers that the channel would close on 30 June.
The broadcaster subsequently confirmed that it will also be closing the Magic Showcase channel as part of its regular reviews of channel line-ups.
“This process enables us to deliver unbeatable entertainment while ensuring that our DStv services continue to meet the evolving needs and viewing preferences of our customers,” it said.
“As part of this ongoing review, Magic Showcase and CineMagic will no longer be available on DStv effective 30 June 2026 at 23:59 CAT.”
Magic Showcase is an 18-hour channel that launched on EasyView in late 2022. It also became available on MultiChoice’s digital TV product GOtv Lite.
Magic Showcase boasts a curated selection of popular local series, telenovelas, and documentaries, including reruns of episodes from programmes on M-Net, Mzansi Magic, and kykNET.
While DStv positioned the channel as a way for its less affluent customers to enjoy some of its award-winning, top-tier content, it also served as a way to lure those subscribers to its higher-end packages.
The broadcaster appears to be deprioritising its EasyView bouquet, which is its cheapest offering at R50 per month.
Following updates to its website in recent months, DStv removed the package from its online store. While still available to new subscribers, sign-ups are only available via its call centre or WhatsApp support.
At the same time, the broadcaster has made significant enhancements to its second most affordable offering, the Access bouquet.
Access is priced at R150 per month for the satellite service and R99 per month for a streaming-only package.
In January, DStv added three channels from its more expensive packages to the bouquet: WWE, Trace Ngoma, and Trace Gospel.
For the first time since it started broadcasting the FIFA World Cup, it also made all live matches in the tournament available on Access.
Parliament concerned over impact on local film industry
Following the removal of these two channels, DStv will have cut seven channels across all its bouquets in 2026.
It started the year by dropping BET Africa, CBS Reality, CBS Justice, and MTV Base. That change was due in part to the channels’ owner, Paramount, shutting down its linear TV operations in Africa.
At the end of January 2026, it also removed Tlnovelas on channel 131. That offering is due to be replaced by Novelas+ on 1 July, which will be available on Access, Family, Compact, Compact Plus, and Premium.
The latest channel changes might not sit well with South African lawmakers, who have already raised alarm over the impact of DStv owner Canal+’s cost cuts on the local film industry.
The company plans to reduce MultiChoice’s combined annual operating expenses by R7.5 billion. One major move in this regard was shutting down its “expensive commercial failure” Showmax.
The decision became the subject of a meeting of the Parliament’s Portfolio Committee on Communications and Digital Technologies.
The committee called two authorities that approved Canal+’s acquisition of MultiChoice to the meeting to get more details about the deal’s conditions.
The concerns resulted in the Competition Commission launching an investigation into Canal+’s actions to determine whether it violated the deal’s conditions.
The deal’s conditions required that Canal+ sustain multi-billion-rand investments in South African content production and barred it from retrenching workers in South Africa.
However, by mid-June 2026, Canal+ had reportedly shed over 312 of its 3,400 staff at the MultiChoice headquarters in Randburg through voluntary severance packages.
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