MULTICHOICE 2023: Reactions as DSTV records R2.92 billion loss after 55% of their Premium subscribers unsubscribed

Reactions as DSTV records R2.92 billion loss after 55% of their Premium subscribers unsubscribed.

Multimedia group Multichoice has reported its annual financial results for the year ended 31 March 2023, recording a loss of R2.92 billion for the year.

Group revenue increased 7% to R59.1 billion (2022: R55.2 billion), with costs and expenses rising 9% and 12%, respectively.

Operating profit before taxes and foreign exchange losses amounted to R10.16 billion, down 1% from R10.3 billion recorded in 2022. Profit before tax was R921 million but dropped to a loss of R2.92 billion after tax (from a profit of R2.9 billion in 2022).

According to Multichoice, the high tax cost came because the group’s effective tax rate increased due to increased foreign exchange losses.

According to the report, DStv operator Multichoice noted a R2.92 billion loss for the year.

According to My Broadband, MultiChoice reported a 23% drop in trading profit from R11 billion to R8.4 billion for its South African viewers.

Local revenue also dropped by 2% from R35.6 billion to just under R35 billion. Multichoice also noted a significant loss in DStv premium package subscribers.

For various reasons – including the steep price of living – many South Africans are choosing to cancel their DStv subscriptions. And the results speak for themselves after the entertainment’s owners – Multichoice Group – documented a whopping loss of almost R3 billion in profit.

The data was published in their annual report, which ended on March 203. Justifying the loss, it said in its report: “The South African consumer-facing business environment faced severe challenges during FY23 [the financial year 2023]

“At a time when consumers were already battling with interest rate hikes, elevated inflation, and high levels of unemployment, load-shedding moved from being intermittent to becoming a permanent fixture in customers’ lives.”

“Permanent high stages of load shedding, interest rate hikes, and elevated inflation levels have left a large portion of the group’s customer base unable to watch or afford video entertainment services.”