DStv competitor in South Africa for R33 per month

The launch of Amazon Prime in South Africa poses a notable threat to DStv, as the inclusion of Amazon’s streaming service makes DStv’s offering look considerably less attractive.

Global e-commerce giant Amazon launched its Prime membership service in South Africa on 3 June 2026.

For R59 a month or R399 a year (which equates to R33.25 a month), South Africans can now access unlimited free same-day and next-day delivery on a wide range of items with no minimum spend.

Crucially, Prime members can also enjoy unlimited streaming of exclusive Amazon Originals and international movies and series on Prime Video, Amazon’s streaming service.

It is this part of Amazon’s Prime offering that could be the final nail in the coffin for DStv.

Amazon Prime Video has been available in South Africa for a few years, but previously cost just under R80 a month.

However, with the launch of Prime, South Africans can now access the streaming service and other benefits for R33.25 a month.

For many South Africans, a price this low for a service that grants them access to thousands of movies, TV series, and original content could make DStv’s offering look inferior in comparison.

Currently, DStv offers a stream-only package for R99 per month, and a decoder-only package for R150 per month.

For combination packages of streaming and decoder viewing, South Africans could pay anywhere from R299 per month to R699 per month.

Many South Africans still use DStv’s services, largely due to its exclusive sports offerings and original local content.

However, the pay-TV provider has been bleeding subscribers over the past few years, losing 2.8 million in the past two years alone.

DStv’s total subscriber base peaked at 17.3 million in 2023, only to have fallen to 14.5 million in 2025.

In addition, DStv owner MultiChoice recently had to shut down its own streaming service, Showmax, as it was haemorrhaging money and failing to deliver the growth the company had hoped for.

Amazon coming after the competition

Independent TV and entertainment critic Thinus Ferreira recently explained to 702’s Gugs Mhlungu why Amazon is offering its Prime benefits at such a low price point.

According to Ferreira, Amazon has intentionally set the price of Prime extremely low to attract customers and gain market share from competitors like DStv and Takealot.

He explained that previously, it may not have been worth it for South Africans who already had Netflix, DStv, and Showmax subscriptions to pay an additional R89 per month for Prime Video.

However, at the R59 or R33.25 a month price point, Amazon’s offering becomes far more competitive.

“Amazon now wants to take on really aggressively the Takealot and the Temus of the world,” Ferreira explained. “So, they are now running basically their service as a loss leader.” 

“This R59 a month is not going to last forever, but they’re making it really cheap so that they can steal customers away and give customers the option to sort of sample the service.”

Therefore, while Amazon Prime may not stay at its current low price point forever, it could steal significant market share from competitors until then.

Given South Africa’s low average income and difficult consumer environment, many households cannot afford to pay for multiple streaming services simultaneously.

South African consumers are also known to be highly price-sensitive and willing to cut discretionary spending during periods where the cost of living rises.

This is why Amazon’s bundling of its streaming service with benefits like free delivery and exclusive discounts could give it the edge it needs to stand out from more expensive competitors such as Netflix, DStv, and Takealot.

In addition, for current Prime Video subscribers paying R79 per month, an Amazon Prime membership is now an obvious choice if they want to save money.