SABC and Hisense launch SABC+ streaming service in South Africa

Yesterday Telkom announced that it was handing the reigns for the TelkomONE streaming service over to the SABC. The service has been renamed SABC+ and is now a partnership between the public broadcaster and the Chinese brand Hisense.

Initially, the name of the service was still vague and unconfirmed. Today, SABC+ is heading to Hisense’s VIDAA-powered smart TVs. In a bit of a kick in the nuts to Multichoice, the partnership will see 28 of this year’s FIFA World Cup matches broadcast on the platform. Unfortunately, we don’t know which games will be broadcast yet.

SABC+ Football
It’s not just the World Cup, plus a Hisense-helmed recap of the day’s play, coming to the service. All in all, “19 radio stations and 3 free-to-air television channels SABC 1, SABC 2, SABC 3, as well as the SABC Sports Channel and the SABC’s 24-hour news channel” are set to be available. But offering access to (most of) the football event is one way to get people’s attention.

Hisense CEO Vivi Liu said, “We believe that through this partnership, we can create the best possible viewing experience at home for football fans, so as to allow them to focus on enjoying every moment of a FIFA World Cup match.”

It’s not just about adding another streaming service to the various lists. The public broadcaster hopes to use the new platform to improve its finances. SABC group CEO Madoda Mxakwe said, “The SABC+ app also presents a growth path to enhancing revenue and build a strong foundation for future financial sustainability of the SABC.”

Pricing for SABC+ remains the same as TelkomONE’s costs. You can have access for a day for R7, a weekend for R17, a week for R19, or a month for R49. The month makes the most sense, financially. Each tier includes a Telkom data bundle, so users are able to stream. If you opt for a day’s access, you’ll get 90MB of Telkom data. The allocation climbs in increments to 360MB, 720MB, and then 1.8GB for a monthly package. Stuff