Can weekly billing be the sweet spot Multichoice needs?

Losing subscribers is bad for any market or pay-TV platform. With subscriber numbers falling from over 23 million to 19.3 million in less than two years, MultiChoice faces difficult times across multiple African markets.

The losses have been felt in South Africa and in its largest market by subscriber base, Nigeria, where economic strain, high inflation, and power supply instability have eaten deep into household incomes.
Could a pilot campaign recently launched in Uganda offer a lifeline?

Under the ‘ka Weekie’ campaign, MultiChoice’s GOtv platform is offering subscribers weekly subscription packages. The idea is to provide cost-sensitive consumers with flexible, affordable, short-term access to content without the burden of monthly bills.

The move allows subscribers to downgrade temporarily instead of leaving the ecosystem entirely.
If successfully adapted in Uganda and across other key markets, it could boost retention, reduce subscriber churn and unlock incremental revenue.

The weekly billing question
In Nigeria’s  Inflation, exchange rate volatility has played a major part in squeezing consumer wallets, so, unsurprisingly, Nigerians are cutting down on non-essential spending like pay TV. Weekly billing could be the sweet spot.

Weekly billing helps reduce the psychological and financial barrier to entry for consumers who complain of monthly bills ranging from ₦16,800 to ₦2,000.

Imagine, you can pay ₦500 weekly if you already subscribe to the smallie package or ₦4,200 weekly if you are subscribed to the highest package.

Due to economic strain, Nigerians have adopted a “week-to-week” spending mode to adjust to the realities of everyday life. A weekly billing for Pay-Tv fits into the lifestyle.
The flexibility also presents a better option for households that watch TV during the weekends, or watch TV when electricity or fuel is available.

Business sense in bite-sized billing
GOtv’s new model takes a lesson from the telecoms playbook where daily and weekly data bundles became the norm after operators realised that the best way to deepen penetration is by making billing affordable and flexible.

For MultiChoice, the goal is similar to that of telecom companies. The idea is to break down subscriptions to the point where they are more of a habit and less of a burden.
A weekly subscription will keep them top-of-mind—even when consumers struggle to pay for a monthly package.

Subscribers gain weekly access to local dramas, sports, and children’s programming, winning back dormant accounts that might otherwise be gone forever.

From a revenue standpoint, it is a game of volumes. Although the average revenue per user (ARPU) may drop temporarily, the households re-entering the platform, even for shorter durations, will improve the numbers.

Introducing weekly plans in Nigeria also allows for an aggressive digital self-service. With over 122 million internet users and growing comfort with mobile payments, a micro-subscription model fits in perfectly like a hand to a glove.

One lever that MultiChoice can pull as they go through financial rough waters is flexibility. A full rollout of a weekly subscription package in Nigeria could offer just that: an opportunity to reconnect with budget-conscious viewers on every level and squeeze value from a weakening subscriber base.
In the battle for household attention—and wallets—small(even smaller than smallie) might just be mighty.