The cost of Dstv installation:

Before we get into the cost of Dstv installation, what is included in the cost, and what it takes to install a Dstv satellite system, let’s uncover the many other topics of the digital broadcasting service, Dstv.

What is Dstv?

The abbreviation for Digital Satellite Television, Dstv, is a Sub-Saharan African direct broadcast satellite service possessed by MultiChoice. Launched in 1995, the service offers a wide array of channels and services to its subscribers. The majority of its subscribers reside in Nigeria and South Africa, with Kenya, Ghana, Angola, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Uganda, Mauritius, Mozambique, Malawi, Tanzania, Lesotho, Ethiopia, the Republic of the Congo, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Gabon, Eswatini and Botswana also served by the company. DStv, previously retained operations based in Thailand under the United Broadcasting Corporation, UBC, now referred to as TrueVisions.

How did Dstv come to be?

MultiChoice is a South African company in charge of all DStv operations. In addition to this, they also facilitate a major satellite television service in Sub-Saharan Africa and GOtv, a minor service currently operating in more than 9 countries in this area, and Showmax service.

Formed out of the subscriber-management branch of the M-Net terrestrial pay television company, MultiChoice broadcasts the expansive range of M-Net channels on the DStv service. Owned by a media conglomerate with the same name, one of MultiChoice’s subsidiaries is DStv Now, retitled DStv App. The Dstv app is a service that delivers television transmission to your mobile devices like smartphones, notebooks, and laptops.

A Dstv Timeline:

In 1986 pay-television arrived in South Africa when an analogue, single-channel service, M-Net, was launched by Naspers.

In 1993 a second subsidiary company, Multichoice, was created by Naspers. The decoder sales, subscriber services, account management, and other business-related matters were all facilitated by Multichoice.

In 1995 a new digital satellite service (Dstv) in South Africa was announced by Multichoice and DStv was officially activated to subscribers. The original selection of channels being M-Net, TNT, MGM, Sci-Fi Universal, SuperSport, ESPN, Sky News, BBC World News, CNN International, and Cartoon Network amongst others.

Following this was the launch of new services consisting of the W4 Eutelsat satellite with Ku-band services to sub-Saharan Africa and the Indian Ocean Islands in 2000, Interactive Television in 2002, Dual View decoder in 2003, and the DStv Compact and PVR decoder in 2005.

In 2010, DStv on Demand and DVB over IP (Digital Video Broadcast over Internet Protocol) services were launched.

In 2011 DStv BoxOffice and DStv Mobile were launched.

What are the prices of available Dstv packages?

Here are is the break down of Dstv packages offereing as of 2022

1. DStv EasyView costs R29 per month with 36 channels.
2. DStv Access costs R115 per month with 160 channels.
3. DStv Family costs R295 per month with 89 channels.
4. DStv Compact costs R409 per month with 124 channels.
5. DStv Compact Plus costs R539 per month with 141 channels.
6. DStv Premium costs R829 per month with 155 channels.

 

1. DStv EasyView at R29 per month.

EasyView is an affordable start option consisting of 36 channels. If you find yourself looking for something economical, then this is your bouquet. It being the cheapest of all the packages offered by DStv certainly does not lower the bar. This is evident in the abundant channel categories available in this package. These include Movies and Entertainment, Documentaries and Lifestyle, Free channels, Sports, Kids and Teens, Music, Religion, News and Commerce, Specialist and Foreign, and a plethora of Audio Channels!

A few channels to name are:

DStv (100)

TNT Africa (137)

Real Time (155)

e.TV Extra (195)

People’s Weather (180)

2. DStv Access at R115 per month.

What channels can be found on access DStv package? Coming in at the 2^nd cheapest Dstv package option, for 115 to 120 a month Dstv Access offers an astounding 160 channels! A few of the channels present on Dstv Access and not Dstv EasyView are:

Telemundo (118)

Discovery TLC Entertainment (135)

eMovies (138)

kykNet Lekker (148)

PBS kids (313)

3. DStv Family at R295 per month.

At number 3 we have Dstv Family with 89 channels for a monthly R295. The name of this package is quite self-explanatory, the family channel provides programs appropriate for all members of the family to watch. A few of the channels available are:

Discovery Family (136)

National Geographic (181)

SS Football (205)

SS La Liga (204)

Boomerang (302)

4. DStv Compact at R409 per month.

What does Dstv compact entail? Dstv Compact focuses primarily on the movies and entertainment aspect of television. This is evident as this package alone houses more than 40 different channels in this bracket! Some channels present on Dstv compact include:

DStv (100)

M-Net Movies 3 (107)

M-Net Movies 4 (108)

Studio Universal (112)

KIX (114)

5. DStv Compact Plus at R539 per month.

Going for 539 a month, the DStv Compact offers an extensive variety of channels. To name a few:

ITH (114)

ME (115)

Universal TV (117)

Telemundo (118)

BBC Brit (120)

6. DStv Premium costs R829 per month

Providing a whopping 155 channels, the priciest package on the list, Dstv Premium, goes for R829 a month. The channels offered on this package are as follows:

SS RUGBY (211)

SS CRICKET (212)

SS GOLF (213)

Russia Today (407)

Parliamentary Service (408)

Now, on to the real deal:

Cost to Install DSTV

If you have recently bought a decoder, or you have moved and find yourself in need of reinstallation, you will see yourself in the following costs for a basic HD PVR DSTV decoder, or an Explora PVR decoder.

Labor per hour (dependent on installation):

R400 – R600

Smart LNB (receiving device mounted on satellite dishes for satellite TV reception):

R400 – R700

60 – 90m Satellite Dish:

R250 – R450

10m cable:

Included

These costs will vary if you find yourself requiring an upgrade from a single view or, would like to add an extra view.

What will you find included in the cost to install DSTV?

Bolts: 3 – 4 Bolts of Steel coach screws with plastic wall plugs.

Washers: Anodised washers for each bolt.

Bracket: Standard 300 x 150mm wall bracket.

Cable: Cable with a polyethylene outer casing.

Fixtures: 7mm cable clips and black cable ties to fix the cable where necessary.

 

Connectors: 2-4 F-connectors.

LNB

Decoder

Surge arrestor

Final word about Installing Dstv:

Most assume that they do not need help getting their decoder and dish set up. This results in a plethora of issues and a great deal of annoyance. Satellite dishes need to be positioned in the finest spot to guarantee the best reception for the consumer.

Installation becomes increasingly convoluted when one lacks the proper understanding of satellites and decoders, including setting up both of these, than required.

Correct dish installation and alignment offer optimal signal strength for your DSTV decoder, making it your utmost priority to hire a Pro for your installation.