DStv, GOtv Lose Millions as Kenya’s Pay-TV Decline Deepens

Kenya’s pay-TV sector is grappling with steep subscriber losses as streaming platforms tighten their grip on the entertainment market. According to the latest sector statistics from the Communications Authority of Kenya , DStv and GOtv shed a combined 3.4 million subscribers over the past year, underscoring the accelerating decline of traditional pay-TV in the country.

As of June 2025, DStv subscriptions had fallen to just 188,824, an 84.2% plunge from nearly 1.2 million a year earlier. GOtv fared even worse, tumbling 88.7% year-on-year to 314,520 active subscribers, down from 2.79 million in June 2024

The broader pay-TV market is also shrinking. Total active subscriptions dropped 76.9% year-on-year to 1.47 million in June 2025, compared to more than 6.3 million the previous year. The Communications Authority attributes the sharp decline partly to a new methodology that now counts only “active subscriptions” — those generating revenue within the last 90 days — rather than cumulative registered accounts. Still, even with this adjustment, the scale of the losses signals a deep structural shift in consumer preferences.

Analysts point to the rising popularity of streaming services such as Netflix, Showmax, and YouTube, which offer flexible, on-demand viewing at competitive prices. Coupled with Kenya’s expanding mobile broadband penetration — now at 78.2% of all data subscriptions — consumers are increasingly cutting the cord in favor of digital alternatives.

For industry giants like MultiChoice, which owns both DStv and GOtv, the challenge is stark: adapt to an audience that is younger, mobile-first, and less willing to pay for rigid channel bundles. The decline in Kenya mirrors wider regional trends across Africa, where pay-TV operators are under mounting pressure to reinvent their business models.

The numbers suggest that Kenya’s pay-TV golden era may be drawing to a close, with the future of entertainment firmly in the hands of streaming.