Inside Uganda’s emerging fintech ecosystem
Cable TV in Uganda
“It brings economic growth and development to local communities, creates jobs, and supports entrepreneurship.”
By
July 31, 2017
A community entrepreneur named John, wearing a T-shirt with the name of his company in the name barcode, is the front man for Cablevision, one of the country’s most established cable television operators. He has a history of launching businesses in Africa.
A community entrepreneur named John, wearing a T-shirt with the name of his company in the name barcode, is the front man for Cablevision, one of the country’s most established cable television operators. He has a history of launching businesses in Africa.
John is not the first to get into the cable TV business in Uganda. But he is definitely the largest. And he is likely not the last.
In the four years since Cablevision bought Skyvision, the two cable operators merged, Uganda gained one of the world’s largest cable TV markets, accounting for about 70 percent of the country’s total television subscriber base as of June 2017.
And cable operators are not only launching businesses in Uganda. There are now more than 100 cable TV operators in the country, with cable TV penetration ranging from 10 to 30 percent of households. These start-ups have set up shop in the capital, Kampala. In the rural areas, operators have expanded to include cable TV networks in more than 800 rural communities. Some of these operators are launching their own satellite dishes and satellite TV subscription packages.
“It all happens very fast. Within the last 12 months we have launched in Kampala, in Kitgum, Iyinge and Ntungamo. In addition, we are just launching a TV network called iSky in Nakawe,” said Francis Konyakubi, director, CableTV Uganda (CUTV), the country’s cable TV company.
In 2016, Cable TV, a subsidiary of DStv’s parent company, Viacom, entered the Ugandan cable TV market when it launched iSky and TV+, its two cable TV networks. CableTV Uganda’s head office, located in Kibuku town, was established in 2010 and