As Joox marks its second year in South Africa, the music streaming service says continued rise in entry-level smartphone sales and its DStv partnership are key indicators for its growth.
Joox, owned by Tencent Africa, was first launched in South Africa in June 2017 as one of the first major music streaming services with local offices here. Since launching globally in January 2015, it has passed the 100-million subscriber mark.
“There are three main factors that we believe will help us further grow our market share locally,” says Milton Smith, Chief Operations Officer at Tencent Africa. “First is the positive growth of smartphone sales, particularly within the low-end market, which is bringing South Africans closer to digital streaming.”
Market research from GfK showed that low-end smartphones (R1499 and below) accounted for 61% of unit sales in 2018, giving more people access to apps, content and services.
“Second is our partnership with DStv,” says Smith. “Last year, Joox partnered with DStv to give over 20 million South Africans free access to unlimited music, through their DStv Compact, Compact Plus and Premium subscriptions for the account holder and four family members.”
Multichoice’s recently published annual financial results showed a majority of growth has been within the lower-end subscriber segment including DStv Compact, which grew from 37% to 42%. This also opens up Joox to a bigger user base that may not have had access to a music streaming service before.
“Lastly is the very noticeable growth of streaming globally, and more importantly in South Africa and the African continent. This has opened up a market of consumers who are looking for added value especially during these hard financial times.”
Industry data from Tunecore, an independent digital music distribution, publishing, and licensing service, has indicated a surge in streaming globally, with Africa seeing the highest growth, at 146%, in 2018, South Africa had the second most growth, at 125%, second to Morocco at 243%.
* For more information visit www.joox.co.za.
