from MAVHUTO BANDA in Lilongwe, Malawi
Malawi Bureau
LILONGWE, (CAJ News) – MALAWI’S communications regulator and Multichoice have engaged to explore if the entertainment company can review subscriptions costs of its services to the local market.
This comes amid calls by the Malawi Communications Regulatory Authority (MACRA) for Multichoice Malawi to review the prices, after prevailing public outcry that the costs were steep.
Concerns come at a time the Southern African country is enduring its worst economic crisis in years.
MACRA discloses that its officials met Multichoice Malawi, led by Managing Director, Averess Ndlovu-Chella.
Mayamiko Nkoloma, Acting Director General, revealed Ndlovu-Chella had since committed to explore ways to review the pricing structure as the company strives to grow the media and entertainment industry.
“She expressed MultiChoice’s drive for closer dialogue and engagement with the regulator to nurture a cordial relationship,” Nkoloma said.
At the engagements in Lilongwe, Multichoice Malawi appealed for MACRA’s support towards the repatriation of revenues to its mother company in South Africa.
Multichoice Malawi DStv packages range from K59 500 (US$34,34) for Compact and K138 000 ($79,74) for Premium.
The last increases were implemented in April 2025.
Multichoice Malawi operates under a tough environment in the country, with foreign exchange shortages among the main impediments.
It was involved in tariff tussles with MACRA, culminating in it suspending DStv services from August to December 2023.
While MultiChoice Group does not typically release specific subscriber counts for individual countries, as of March 2025, MultiChoice reported a 7-percent decline year-on-year due to high inflation and currency devaluations in key “Rest of Africa” markets like Malawi and Nigeria.
– CAJ News