Boost in subscribers pushes MultiChoice Group interim earnings up by a solid 41%

DURBAN – The MultiChoice Group interim earnings jumped by 41 percent, boosted by 1.2 million 90-day active subscribers year on year.

At the end of September, the group yesterday reported 20.1 million households and exceeded the 20 million subscriber milestone for the first time.

As a result, for the six months to September its core headline earnings increased by 41 percent to R2.7 billion and trading profit rose by 19 percent to R5.7bn, benefiting from a R500 million reduction in losses in the Rest of Africa operations and a resilient performance in South Africa.

MultiChoice said the trading profit impact of Covid-19 was largely neutral, as the R900m revenue loss was offset by R800m in delayed content costs. Chief executive Calvo Mawela said despite operating in a challenging environment and being affected by lockdowns, production stoppages and disruptions to live sport, they delivered on all key metrics.

“A strong focus on cost reduction allowed for a further R1bn in cost savings during the period. We also narrowed the losses in the Rest of Africa by 59 percent year on year (or R500m) to R338m,” Mawela said.