Kwese TV Channels in Nigeria: The Service Has Shut Down
Kwesé TV went off air in 2019. This is what its channel line-up was, and what DStv and GOtv cost in Nigeria for anyone replacing it.
Kwesé TV stopped being a pay-TV service on 1 November 2018, a little over a year after it launched in Nigeria. That day Econet Media, the company behind it, announced that the paid channels were coming off its satellite bouquet. What was left was switched off on 5 August 2019. There is no Kwesé package to buy today, and a Kwesé decoder has nothing left to subscribe to.
The channel list below is a record of what the service carried. After it comes what DStv and GOtv cost now, for anyone replacing it.
What happened to Kwesé TV
Kwesé TV was the satellite pay-TV service of Econet Media, part of Strive Masiyiwa’s Econet group. It launched in Nigeria in October 2017. ₦10,960 bought the dish, the decoder and installation, with the first 30 days of viewing included. After that a 30-day pass was ₦6,275, and there were shorter passes too: three days for ₦990 or seven days for ₦1,850.
It did not last. On 1 November 2018 Econet Media said it would concentrate on the free-to-air channel Kwesé Free Sports and on streaming, through the Kwesé iflix app and the Kwesé Play box. The satellite bouquet lost its third-party pay channels and Kwesé’s own sports and entertainment channels. Free-to-air, religious and free news channels stayed, with the monthly subscription waived. Subscribers who had paid for November or further ahead were promised a full refund.
The rest went in 2019. Econet Media went into administration in July. Econet then announced that the Kwesé satellite service would be discontinued from 5 August, saying it could no longer find the foreign currency to pay its content suppliers. Techpoint, reporting from Nigeria that week, found Kwesé Free Sports off the air and the Kwesé TV and Kwesé iflix apps gone from the app stores.
No Kwesé service is left
Kwesé’s old website now shows a holding page with no service on it. A search of Google Play turns up no Kwesé app. We could not find any company selling Kwesé subscriptions in Nigeria.
The decoder in the picture was built for Kwesé’s own signal, and that signal is gone. Do not buy one second-hand expecting a pay-TV service to come with it.
What the Kwesé TV channel list was
Kwesé advertised more than 65 channels when it launched in Nigeria. These are the ones it named in its launch announcement.
| Type | Channels |
|---|---|
| Sport | Kwesé Sports 1, Kwesé Sports 2, Kwesé Free Sports, ESPN |
| Entertainment | Viceland, REVOLT TV, DTX, Passion, Zee Bollynova, African Movie Channel, African Movie Channel Series, Kwesé Movies 3 |
| Children | DreamWorks, Boomerang, CBeebies, Cartoon Network, Jim Jam, Toonami |
| News | CNN International, Channels TV, TVC News, NTA, Africa News |
| Still free when a subscription lapsed | Africa News, Flow TV, NTA, Islam TV, Kwesé Free Sports |
Sport was the selling point. Kwesé was the NBA’s exclusive broadcaster in sub-Saharan Africa, and its launch line-up also listed the NFL and Anthony Joshua’s fights. Kwesé Free Sports held free-to-air rights to the 2018 World Cup and to the Premier League.
The longer list this page used to carry dated from 2018. None of it can be watched on Kwesé now, so we have not repeated it.
What to use now
DStv and GOtv are both run by MultiChoice. DStv comes by satellite dish, as Kwesé did. GOtv uses a small antenna.
| What you compare | Kwesé TV at launch | DStv now | GOtv now |
|---|---|---|---|
| How it reaches you | Satellite dish | Satellite dish | GOtenna antenna, no dish |
| Starter kit | ₦10,960 for dish, decoder, installation and 30 days of viewing | ₦15,000 for decoder, dish kit and a month of Yanga | ₦15,000 for decoder, antenna and a month of Jolli |
| Price per month | ₦6,275 | ₦4,400 to ₦44,500 | ₦1,900 to ₦16,800 |
| Channels | 65+ | 45+ to 140+ | 35+ to 85+ |
The DStv and GOtv figures are from their own websites. Neither of their starter prices mentions installation, so ask what the installer charges before you pay.
Which one replaces Kwesé for you
- You paid about ₦6,000 a month and want to stay there: DStv Yanga is ₦6,000 for 90+ channels and GOtv Jolli is ₦5,800 for 65+. Yanga needs a dish. Jolli does not.
- You bought Kwesé for ESPN and the NBA: ESPN is on GOtv from Jolli upward. For the NBA, DStv lists it among the highlights of Compact Plus, at ₦30,000 a month.
- You want the Premier League: DStv Compact at ₦19,000, or GOtv Supa Plus at ₦16,800. DStv also says Yanga shows some Premier League games on SuperSport Football, without saying how many.
- You want cartoons for the children: Kwesé had Cartoon Network and Jim Jam. On GOtv, Jim Jam is on every package, Nickelodeon starts at Jinja (₦3,900) and Cartoon Network at Max (₦8,500).
- You want the cheapest thing that works: GOtv Smallie at ₦1,900 a month, which is mostly local stations.
Our pick for most former Kwesé homes is GOtv Jolli. In plain naira it costs a little less than Kwesé’s 30-day pass did, it has ESPN, and the ₦15,000 bundle already includes a month of it. The exception is anyone who wants the Premier League every weekend. That means DStv Compact or GOtv Supa Plus, at about three times the monthly bill.
One thing neither replaces is Kwesé’s three-day and seven-day passes. DStv and GOtv price their packages by the month, and GOtv Smallie by the quarter or year as well.
If the Kwesé dish is still on your wall, ask the installer whether it can be reused, but do not count on a saving: DStv’s ₦15,000 bundle comes with its own dish kit.
Our two guides go through every package: DStv decoders and prices and GOtv packages and prices.
Quick answers
Is Kwesé TV still active?
No. The paid channels were removed on 1 November 2018 and the satellite service was shut down on 5 August 2019.
What happened to Kwesé TV?
Econet Media gave up satellite pay TV in 2018 to focus on streaming, went into administration in July 2019 and closed the service the following month. It blamed a shortage of foreign currency to pay for content.
Who owned Kwesé TV?
Econet Media, part of Strive Masiyiwa’s Econet group.
How much was the Kwesé decoder in Nigeria?
₦10,960 at launch in October 2017, with the dish and installation. Kwesé no longer sells it.
Can I still use a Kwesé decoder?
Not for Kwesé. There is no Kwesé signal or subscription left, so treat any offer of a “working” Kwesé package with suspicion.
