The Communication Authority of Kenya (CA) has changed how it measures Tv subscription by shifting from the previous used cumulative sign ups to active subscription a bold move that has been used to generate revenue for the last 90 days
According to the latest data for Q4 2024/25, the active subscribers numbers stood at 1.48 million as of June 2025 which represents 76.9 percent which is a decline from the previous one year .
Digital Terrestrial Television (DTT) which is dominated by GOtv and Startimes enumerated a total of 806,850 active accounts which is a drop of over 82 percent the same period last year .
While Direct -To-Home satellite (DTH) which comprises of DStv, Azam, Startimes and Zuku had garnered 602 706 subscribers which is a 67.3 percent drop
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Despite the drop observed in both (DTT) and (DTH) only cable television showed a glimmer of stability Zuku being the major player in this segment has it managed to hold 66,865 subscribers managing a 12.2 percent rise over last year .
This sharp drop in Kenya’s pay Tv subscribers isn’t because of customer left but rather it is because of some of the regulator decision change such as stripping away the illusion of dormant decoders and promotion freebies that padded subscription counts
At the same time competition from platforms such as Netflix, Showmax and YouTube together with the cheaper smartphones that are emerging Kenyan households are now slowly ignoring satellite dishes for mobile streaming apps. For instance the young populace now deems Tvs as less appealing.
With this ongoing shake up different strategies are being laid such as Multi-choice relying heavily on live sport to keep subscribers.
