The future of the film industry: Showmax's shutdown and the rise of AI technology

In the history of technological disruption, the most consequential changes often begin quietly—with a corporate memo, a strategic pivot, or a decision that seems administrative at first glance.

- WESLEY DIPHOKO

SHOWMAX, after a revamp in 2024, has been canned by Multichoice, a Canal + company.

(SHOWMAX)

Such moments rarely announce themselves as turning points. Yet, in retrospect, they often reveal the contours of an industry's future.The South African film sector may now be standing at one of those moments.

Two developments—seemingly unrelated—have emerged from opposite sides of the global streaming landscape. The first involves the French media giant Canal+ and its decision to close down Showmax. The second concerns Netflix and its unexpected decision to acquire an artificial-intelligence startup founded by Ben Affleck.

Individually, each decision reflects a corporate strategy. Taken together, they reveal something deeper about the evolution of the film industry.

When Canal+ explained the reasoning behind the Showmax shutdown, the language was characteristically corporate but revealing. The company noted that “this evolution is also consistent with the ambition of MultiChoice, a Canal+ Company, to deploy its in-house large-scale streaming platform capable of meeting the expectations of African and international consumers.”

Translated into simpler terms, the problem was not merely content. It was technology.

Showmax had struggled with losses, but Canal+ also identified technological inefficiencies within the platform. Rather than continue refining the existing infrastructure, the company decided to replace it—deploying its own streaming technology as the backbone of a new service designed for scale.