MTN launches One TV streaming platform across South Africa and Zambia

MTN’s entry signals a pivot from passive data provider to active content aggregator, leveraging its billing dominance to solve the payment friction that plagues African streaming. By offering ad-supported and pay-per-view tiers, MTN is challenging the rigid monthly subscription models used by global rivals like Netflix. This strategy arrives at a critical transition point for the continent’s media landscape; while incumbents like Showmax struggled with fixed costs, MTN’s vertical integration of connectivity and fintech provides a lower-cost acquisition channel. Watch for conversion rates of free-to-view users into paid tiers via Mobile Money as a benchmark for telco-led streaming viability.

The launch of One TV coincides with a period of massive consolidation and restructuring across the African streaming sector. On March 5, 2026, Canal+ and MultiChoice announced the shutdown of Showmax, once Africa’s largest native streaming platform. According to Variety and punchng.com, the decision followed a review by Canal+ after its September 2025 acquisition of MultiChoice, citing ‘unsustainable’ annual losses and failure to meet subscriber growth targets despite a $309 million joint investment with NBCUniversal.

Per Legit.ng, MTN previously attempted to penetrate the video-on-demand market with its FrontRow (later VU) service, which launched in 2014 but was discontinued in 2017 due to scaling difficulties. The company also operated MusicTime, a unique time-based music streaming service launched in 2018. The debut of One TV represents a more technically integrated approach under MTN's 'Ambition 2030' strategy, which aims for a total transformation into a digital services platform.

Regional competition is also intensifying beyond traditional broadcasters. Per Developing Telecoms, MTN rival Airtel Africa has operated Airtel TV since 2020. This shift toward telco-led platforms is supported by data from Statista, which forecasts that African streaming revenues will reach $7.1 million by 2029 as mobile operators use their control over customer billing and internet infrastructure to capture unbanked audiences that lack access to international credit cards.