Openview, South Africa’s First Satellite Free-to-Air Service, Using Nagra Security Solutions

Nagra, a Kudelski Group company and an independent provider of content protection and media and entertainment solutions, today announced that Openview, South Africa’s largest independent and free-to-air television service with over 3 million free-to-view subscribers, has extended its relationship with Nagra to secure Ultraview, its new pay TV offering.

“Nagra has played an instrumental role as a trusted partner in evolving our business from solely a free-to-air service to now including a paid option with Ultraview,” said Khalik Sherrif, Group CEO at eMedia Investments. “Knowing that all of our channels, whether free-to-air or subscription-based, are protected is essential as we invest in new content to attract new audiences.”

With over 3 million free-to-view subscribers via satellite, Openview can securely offer Ultraview, its pay TV bouquet subscription service, to creating new revenue streams while also increasing the value it provides subscribers. Currently offering two bouquets, Pride, comprising two channels catering to the LGBTQIA+ community, and Spice, composed of two channels catering to the Indian diaspora, the operator has plans to launch a further two additional bouquets later this year.

In addition to securing existing content, Nagra provides Openview with a scalable solution that offers the option to range additional paid content as required over time.  The approach ensures the secure availability of exclusive content made available as part of these bouquets or separately. New content could include additional pay-per-view content or pop-up channels and events.

Nancy Goldberg, Nagra executive vice president and chief marketing and sales officer, said: “We are proud to extend our partnership with Openview which demonstrates our mutual teams’ desire to innovate together and use Nagra solutions to drive and monetize change”, said. We wish OpenView enormous success with their new Ultraview proposition as they explore new business models and reach new audiences.”