For years, Saturday afternoons meant the whole family gathered around the big screen for sport, and DStv was the only way to get it. These days, the living room looks different. Teenagers are curled up watching anime on Netflix, the kids switch between Disney cartoons, and parents settle in later for a local drama on Showmax. One couch, three screens, and no one fighting over the remote.

The numbers back up this change. According to data pay-TVsubscriptions have slid from more than eight million in 2020 to just over 7.4 million in 2024. Streaming subscriptions, by contrast, are climbing steadily as Wi-Fi spreads and mobile data costs drop.

For many families, the old satellite bundle no longer fits. DStv Premium still delivers all the live sport in one place, but at R979 a month it is a heavy hit to the wallet. By comparison, a stack of streaming services looks far lighter. Netflix starts at R99, Showmax Entertainment is R99, and Disney Plus is R159. Together, they add up to less than half the cost of Premium, and you can turn them on or off whenever you like.

That flexibility is the appeal. You can binge the latest Korean thriller on Netflix this month, pause it next month when the kids want Disney, and keep Showmax ticking for South African series. Entertainment bends to your routine rather than the other way round.

The one big line in the sand is sport. If your weekends revolve around the Boks, the Premier Soccer League, or the Champions League, satellite still makes sense, or you can add Showmax Premier League for a focused option. But for everyone else, streaming offers the same couch time for far less.