Summary

The country has a relatively large and young population that is tech-savvy and is embracing OTT services such as video streaming, social media, and online gaming. Major players such as Netflix and Amazon Prime are present in the market, but local players such as ShowMax and VODAFONE TV are also emerging. However, the OTT market in South Africa faces several challenges, including limited broadband infrastructure in some areas and a lack of local content production. Despite these obstacles, the South African market offers significant growth opportunities for OTT companies as demand for online content grows and internet infrastructure improves. In recent years, OTT has made inroads into Africa, and the continent is led by two platforms: Netflix and Showmax. Showmax, the African pay-TV provider MultiChoice's OTT offering, attracts viewers with a slate of African originals and global sports coverage. Showmax also has agreements with regional telecom operators to provide carrier billing and promotional pricing to the general public. Meanwhile, Netflix has a massive content library and a consistent stream of new original and licenced content. Country Queen, a family drama, was the platform's first Kenyan series, premiering in July 2022. Disney+ will be available in South Africa in May 2022, along with 2,277 titles, including 1,332 movies and 945 series. While no dates have been announced for Nigeria or Kenya, the platform has expanded its footprint in Africa, launching in Morocco, Egypt, Algeria, Libya, and Tunisia in mid-2022. Furthermore, the COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated the growth of South Africa's OTT market as more people stay at home and rely on online content for entertainment and information. The country's expanding middle class and rising disposable income present new opportunities for OTT companies to reach new customers. The government has also made a push to increase internet access in rural areas, which has helped to boost internet penetration. Despite this growth, there is still a significant digital divide in the country, with many people in rural areas and low-income communities lacking access to the internet. The price of a 1GB data bundle in South Africa averages R78.50 depending on the mobile network on which it is purchased.

According to the research report, "South Africa over the Top (OTT) Market Overview, 2028," published by Bonafide Research, the market is anticipated to add USD XX Billion by the end of 2028. Due to the increase in the number of digital video consumers, media and entertainment dominated over-the-top market share during the forecast period. This will increase demand for OTT services in the media and entertainment industry. However, the communication industry is expected to grow at the fastest rate during the forecast period due to an increase in demand for over-the-top services in the telecommunications industry for video calling, voice, and messaging services. By Device type, SmartTVs and set-top boxes dominated the market share. Because of the larger screen and easy switching options between cable and OTT platforms. Furthermore, as smartphone penetration increased, smartphones became the second most popular device for streaming OTT platforms. They are also inexpensive, allowing people of all income levels to use smartphones and streaming platforms. During the forecasted period, subscription VOD is expected to manage the market. This is primarily due to an increase in the number of subscribers using over-the-top (OTT) platforms. Furthermore, due to the high demand for advertising videos for product and service promotion, advertisement-based VOD is steadily increasing. The market is divided into personal and commercial user types. The market is expected to be driven by the personal user segment. The growing use of smartphones and tablets, as well as easily accessible internet, raises the market's perception of OTT services for personal entertainment and knowledge.

According to a finding, The total population of South Africa was 60.40 million. In January 2022, South Africa had more than 40 million internet users. At the start of 2022, South Africa's internet penetration rate was around 70% of the total population. Around 20 million South Africans did not use the internet at the start of 2022, implying that 30% of the population was offline at the start of the year. In January 2022, South Africa had more than 28 million social media users. According to Meta's advertising resources, Facebook had approximately 24 million users in South Africa in early 2022. According to Google's advertising resources, YouTube had more than 25 million users in South Africa in early 2022. According to Meta's advertising tools, Instagram had approximately 6.20 million users in South Africa in early 2022.According to LinkedIn's advertising resources; LinkedIn had approximately 9.50 million "members" in South Africa in early 2022. According to Snap's advertising resources, Snapchat had approximately 6.25 million users in South Africa in early 2022. According to Twitter's advertising resources, Twitter had approximately 2.85 million users in South Africa in early 2022.

In South Africa, more than 65% of people watch music videos. Around 55% of people watch a comedy, meme, or viral video. Around 40% of people watch video livestreams. More than 42% of people watch educational videos. More than 30% of people watch sports highlights or clips. Around 20% of people watch Gaming Videos. More than a quarter of all people watch Influencer videos and vlogs. In the South African OTT market, some of the major reasons for the higher utilization of the internet In South Africa population ranging from16 to 64 years include finding information, researching how to do things, finding new ideas and inspiration, staying in touch with friends and family, researching brands, education and study, watching videos, TV shows, and movies, listening to music, researching health issues and products, researching places, travelling, business networking, and many more.

During the COVID -19 pandemic, film studios and content creators have been hit hard by cinema complex/hall closures. National producers are increasingly turning to OTT to deal with the situation. The prolonged lockdowns and the current state of the economy have thrown open the doors to the world of entertainment via OTT. People are wary of going to theatres to watch entertainment content, so OTT media platforms have grown in popularity. Netflix, for example, has stepped in to fill the void. To reach viewers, entertainment content producers are turning to OTT service providers. With so many OTT services available to users, it is difficult to attract and retain new subscribers. Customers typically receive free or discounted introductory offers. Subscribers can sign up for a free trial and then cancel when it expires; in the meantime, a lack of new content drives away subscribers and the complex user interface can cause customers to unsubscribe from the service.

Considered in this report
• Geography: South Africa
• Historic year: 2017
• Base year: 2022
• Estimated year: 2023
• Forecast year: 2028

Aspects covered in this report
• South Africa Over The Top (OTT) market with its value and forecast along with its segments
• Various drivers and challenges
• On-going trends and developments
• Top profiled companies
• Strategic recommendation

By Type:
• AVOD (Advertising-based Video On Demand)
• SVOD (Subscription Video on Demand)
• TVOD (Transactional Video on Demand)
• Others

By Device Type:
• Smartphones and Tablets
• Desktops and Laptops
• Smart TVs & Set-Top Box
• Gaming Consoles & Streaming Devices

By Content Type:
• Video Streaming
• Game Streaming
• Audio Streaming
• Communication

By Service Verticals:
• Media and Entertainment
• Education and Learning
• Gaming
• Service Utilities

By User Type:
• Personal
• Commercia

By Component Type:
• Solution
• Service

The approach of the report:
This report consists of a combined approach of primary as well as secondary research. Initially, secondary research was used to get an understanding of the market and list out the companies that are present in the market. The secondary research consists of third-party sources such as press releases, and annual reports of companies, analyzing the government-generated reports and databases. After gathering the data from secondary sources primary research was conducted by making telephonic interviews with the leading players about how the market is functioning and then conducting trade calls with dealers and distributors of the market. Post this we have started doing primary calls to consumers by equally segmenting consumers into regional aspects, tier aspects, age groups, and gender. Once we have primary data with us we started verifying the details obtained from secondary sources.

Intended audience
This report can be useful to industry consultants, manufacturers, suppliers, associations & organizations related to the Over The Top (OTT) industry, government bodies, and other stakeholders to align their market-centric strategies. In addition to marketing & presentations, it will also increase competitive knowledge about the industry.