As you might have heard, Netflix – the online, on-demand media streaming service – is now available in South Africa.
As you might have heard, Netflix – the online, on-demand media streaming service – is now available in South Africa.
Potentially it means that, for a fairly reasonable monthly subscription, you will have access to hundreds of popular television shows and movies that you can stream ("streaming" means that you can watch the video file for a movie or TV show as it loads, rather than waiting for it to fully download before you can watch it) – including Netflix's own series like Orange is the New Black and House of Cards.
For South Africans it means there is now an alternative to the current (and expensive) paid for TV services on offer – and competition is usually a good thing.
However, while potential access is all very well, what kind of internet capacity is required and will it break the bank?
Greg Wright, tech expert and Product Owner at Webafrica, says, “The Netflix revolution is good news for South Africans – among other benefits, there is no more need to hide your location using VPN connections or sneak around with third party apps.
All you really need is a decent internet connection – be it fibre, ADSL or mobile. If you are concerned with saving your data, there is added good news. With Netflix, you have the ability to actually set your bandwidth consumption within your Netflix account by setting the quality of your video".
He adds that, contrary to popular belief, a decent internet connection that will allow you to use a streaming service like Netflix does not have to break the bank. In fact, it might be cost efficient in the long run.
"Take fibre-to-the-home (FTTH), for example. FTTH allows users to stream footage on demand, without buffering. Unlike ADSL, with FTTH there is no requirement to couple Telkom voice lines with a fibre line. Saying goodbye to Telkom voice lines means a monthly saving of R186 per month.
Due to its super-streaming abilities, there is also less of a need for expensive satellite TV subscriptions. Many fibre customers end up cancelling their satellite subscriptions, or at least downgrade them to a cheaper package. The cherry on top is that fibre is more affordable than people think.
For example, there are packages where a 20/2Mbps fibre line with a 200GB data bundle and free router and setup retail for R769 per month. A package like this should fulfil all the needs of an average-sized family. And if you have said goodbye to Telkom and satellite TV, it’s a win-win."
Currently, internet over fibre is only available in certain towns and suburbs where the cables have physically been laid. It's not yet available in Grahamstown but there is talk that it isn't far off.
Without fibre, your next best option for streaming Netflix movies and series, says Greg, is to get an ADSL package. "There are various packages available – a capped account for streaming services is a good option as it is on a higher bandwidth priority.
Again, this kind of bundle will not break the bank. For example, a 100GB capped package retails for R199 per month."
