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Streaming

  • Disney is launching its own video streaming service in 2019

    By on 10 August, 2017

    The Walt Disney Company will launch its own streaming service as soon as 2019, the company announced. Following this week's acquisition of BAMTech -- the company behind live streaming of major US sports, including Major League Baseball, WWE and the National Hockey League -- Disney noted that it will also lunch an ESPN-branded "multi-sport video streaming service" in early 2018. The deal sees Walt's company dropping an additional US$1.58-billion to secure an additional 42% stake in the firm. It previously owned just 33%. This values BAMTech -- which was owned by Major League Baseball's internet company, MLBAM -- at around US$3.75-billion. "The...

  • Christopher Nolan labels Netflix ‘mindless’, the internet responds

    By on 20 July, 2017

    Christopher Nolan has come out in defense of theatrical distributions ahead of his latest film Dunkirk's release. In an interview with IndieWire, the director called Netflix's distribution policy "mindless" in that it requires content to be simultaneously released on digital and in theatres. "I think they're missing a huge opportunity," he said. "You can see that Amazon is very clearly happy to not make that same mistake. The theaters have a 90-day window. It’s a perfectly usable model. It’s terrific." Christopher Nolan had a few choice words about streaming service Netflix this week, calling it 'mindless' Nolan is famous for his determination to shoot on film, and works to optimise...

  • 50.1% of Netflix’s users are now beyond US borders

    By on 18 July, 2017

    Netflix has had a remarkable week, nay, a remarkable past three months. The company has unveiled its financial report for Q2 2017, and it's markedly better than analysts' forecasts. And that pushed the streaming firm's stock price up by 10.7% after hours. As for the hard numbers, the most positive gain can be seen in its increased user base. Netflix's streaming membership base now stands at 104-million, up from 99-million in the previous quarter. This is largely thanks to massive gains internationally. The company added 4.14-million subscribers in Q2 2017 beyond the United States' borders -- that's nearly double the estimates analysts provided...

  • SuzelleDIY creators, ShowMax team up for service’s first original show

    By on 13 June, 2017

    Julia Anastasopoulos of SuzelleDIY fame is joining forces with ShowMax in its first original production, the company today announced. The streaming service revealed that filming for the show, dubbed Tali's Wedding Diary, is currently underway in Cape Town. The eight-part show will take the form of a mockumentary, with Anastasopoulos starring as titular character Tali. "Building on the phenomenal success of her SuzelleDIY character, Anastasopoulos stars as Tali, a self-obsessed Sandton princess who’s moved to Cape Town and has hired a documentary crew to film the build-up to her wedding to property-agent fiancé Darren," reads ShowMax's press release. Julia Anastasopoulos and Ari Kruger...

  • 4 Netflix exclusives coming to South Africa in June

    By on 29 May, 2017

    This is it: month six. There's no going back now. We're halfway through the year, and we may as well celebrate with some good old Netflix and chill (Is that still a thing? I'm getting old.) Either way, the streaming site has a slow June, with only eight original films and shows being released globally in the month (presumably to do with its US summer schedule.) Here's the best of what's coming to Netflix South Africa this month. 2 June: Flaked Will Arnett's Flaked is back for a season two that sees Chip's unwelcome return to Venice. "Flaked is a dry human comedy about a slice of life...

  • ShowMax and Polish mobile operator strike deal

    By on 16 May, 2017

    Three months after ShowMax announced that it will offer its service in Poland, the South African video streaming company is now partnering with one of the country's chief mobile operators. Play, the operator at the centre of the deal, will now offer ShowMax to its eight-million contract customers. Those with mid- to upper-tier contracts -- the majority -- will receive ShowMax services for free for 12 months. Those in the lower contract brackets will receive one month free. ShowMax will be free to Play's contract subscribers for 12 months "The level of interest in Showmax since our launch in Poland earlier this year...

  • BBM launches DiscoverTV streaming media service for Africa

    By on 4 May, 2017

    Messaging service BBM now has its own streaming video service. Dubbed DiscoverTV, the service aims to provide Africa's 1.1-billion smartphone users with "a wide variety of award-winning short form shows, selected from a diverse range of mobile movies, channels, cartoons and documentaries", the company explains in a press release. This content is available from within the BBM mobile app's Discover menu. Alongside the content, the payment payment methods are also better suited to the continent's mobile-first market. Users pay R1 per day for "unlimited access" to their favourite channel, but can use the service for free for the first month. BBM DiscoverTV is the...

  • 4 Netflix originals coming to South Africa this May

    By on 26 April, 2017

    We're five months into 2017, and time has shown no sign of just, like, slowing down for a little bit. As the great @horse_ebooks once said: "Everything happens so much." But luckily for us, "everything" includes the good. And that means that Netflix happens so much, too. So why not forget about the passing of time this month by binging the latest Netflix originals? 5 May: Sense8 From the creators of The Matrix, Sense8 tells the story of eight strangers from around the globe who develop an intense internal connection. On 5 May, the cluster is back for a second season, ready to explore the themes of love,...

  • From 100m users to Adam Sandler love, here’s Netflix’s big numbers

    By on 18 April, 2017

    Netflix has seen some solid growth since its massive expansion, and now, the company is on track to pass the 100 million user mark in the second quarter of 2017. The streaming colossus saw its users jump from 81.5 million in Q1 2016 to 98.75 million in Q1 2017, its investor report showed. To be fair, the number includes both paid and non-paid users. "We expect to cross the 100 million member mark this weekend. It's a good start," the service added. It's also worth noting that the company's international user additions saw a notable year-on-year drop. "International net additions decreased 22% year over...

  • ShowMax secures streaming rights to The Young Pope

    By on 13 April, 2017

    It's Easter this weekend, and ShowMax's timing is seemingly impeccable. The streaming service has this week announced that it has acquired exclusive rights to The Young Pope, the HBO and Sky hit show that made quite a splash late last year. "In an African first, Showmax has secured the rights to the critically acclaimed joint HBO and Sky production The Young Pope starring Jude Law and Diane Keaton. The controversial series, which portrays the first American Pope as simultaneously hip, mysterious and ultra-conservative, was directed by Oscar-winner Paolo Sorrentinom," the company notes. The show's first season will hit the service on 13...

  • 5 Netflix exclusives coming to South Africa this April

    By on 30 March, 2017

    New month, new you, same confusing Netflix website. There's a lot of fresh content coming to the streaming service in April, but it's a cumbersome and confusing process trying to figure out which are going to be available in South Africa and which aren't. Worry not: we here at Memeburn know how simple all aspects of Netflix binging should be, so here's a list of the best exclusives coming to your devices this month. 7 April: The Get Down The second season of the critically acclaimed The Get Down is premiering the first Friday of April and will be available in Ultra HD 4K for...

  • ShowMax wants to give you free Vodacom data, but…

    By on 27 March, 2017

    South African streaming video service ShowMax is now giving out free data, thanks to a new partnership with Vodacom. The company has announced that users who subscribe to the service from 27 March, will be given 1GB of data for three months. "In addition, existing customers who have already signed up through Vodacom will also receive this data," the company states in a press release. The ShowMax-Vodacom data will be awarded as 1GB chunks across three months "Internet TV is taking off -- it makes so much sense if you’ve got a smartphone or tablet to stream and download TV shows and movies...

  • Netflix replaces star ratings with thumbs, because we’re simple creatures

    By on 17 March, 2017

    I know the biggest issue I've ever faced while binging Black Mirror was extending my brain too far when considering if the episode in which a prime minister is asked to have intimate relations with a pig should get a four or five star rating. I don't use Netflix to think -- and they've finally acknowledged it. The streaming service has announced that it's ditching the star rating system in favour of a YouTube-like thumbs up or down button. As of April, when you're pouring the last of your chips into your mouth, you only need to acknowledge your base emotional response. Nuance be damned. According...

  • YouTube is bringing live TV channels to all devices

    By on 1 March, 2017

    YouTube announced yesterday that its live TV service, set to take on cable, was officially a-go. "It's live TV designed for the YouTube generation -- those who want to watch what they want, when they want, how they want, without commitments," reads the blog post. Working with networks and affiliate partners, YouTube has found a way to live stream from channels like ABC, CBS, FOX, NBC and ESPN -- meaning that viewers will be able to watch live as soon as a new episode of shows like Empire, Scandal and The Big Bang Theory airs.  "Christian Oestlien, Product Management Director, recently used YouTube TV to watch 'The Oscars' live on...

  • 5 Netflix exclusives coming to South Africa this March

    By on 1 March, 2017

    With March comes the inevitable "can you believe it's March already?" small talk, and sometimes it's best just to avoid social interactions all together. So if you're looking to steer clear of conversations about the unstoppable marching of time towards an end we cannot begin to understand, Netflix has you sorted. We've sifted through the Netflix website to find you the best content coming straight to South African devices this month. Still living in February? Catch up with last month's roundup right here. 3 March: Greenleaf The month kicks off as Greenleaf's 13-episode first season arrives to the service. From executive producers Oprah Winfrey (who also...