More and more people have been switching from the use of analog TVs to digital ones and as a result, several digital satellite TV providers have sprung up in the country.
Each of these companies claims to offer the best value for your money with the channels and entertainment they have.
Two of the best-known digital satellite TV providers in Ghana are DSTV and Startimes. DSTV is quite popular in Ghana as well as several other African countries such as South Africa and Nigeria.
DSTV is a South African satellite TV provider owned by MultiChoice. MultiChoice is the same company that owns GOTV.
Startimes is another popular digital satellite TV provider in Ghana. It can also be found in other African nations such as Nigeria, Tanzania, and Guinea.
StarTimes is a Chinese company and its main headquarters is located in Beijing China.
In today’s article, we will take a look at how both of these digital satellite TV providers stack up against each other to see the one that offers real value for money. So without wasting any further time, let us get down to business.
Subscription Package Fees
Both DSTV and Startimes offer several subscription packages that customers need to purchase before they watch anything.
Startimes packages
- Startimes Nova- GHS 25 per month
- Startimes Smart- GHS 50 per month
- Startimes Super- GHS 99 per month
- Startimes Chinese- GHS 125 per month
DSTV packages
- DSTV Padi- GHS 45 per month
- DSTV access- GHS 70 per month
- DSTV family- GHS 130 per month
- DSTV compact- GHS 255 per month
- DSTV compact plus- 380 per month
- DSTV premium- GHS 600 per month
Startimes offers customers the ability to choose between four subscription packages which all come at an affordable price.
The cheapest in the lineup is the Nova package which costs a low GHS 25 per month.
DSTV offers six subscription packages for customers to choose from. The most affordable package offered is the Padi package which costs GHS 45.
DSTV is more expensive while StarTimes is affordable. A decision here will depend on how much of a budget one is willing to spend.
Movies
Movies are one of the main reasons why people sign up for paid TV services and both DSTV and Startimes offer several channels that show amazing film occasionally.
Below are the movie channels offered by each TV provider.
Startimes movie channels
- AMC movies
- St Dadin Kowa
- Silverbird Tv
- E TV
- UTV
- Joy prime
- St Kungfu
- Zee one
- Jimjam
- St Bollywood
- St novella E
- Southern satellite Tv
- Jiangsu satellite TV
- Hunan world
- Dragon TV
- China movies channel
- CCTV entertainment
- Chinese film and television
- Phoenix CNE
- Zhejiang satellite TV
DSTV movie channels
- Africa magic epic
- B4U movies
- ROK
- TNT Africa
- Studio Universal HD
- M-Net movies 1
- M-Net movies 2
- M-Net movies 3
- M-Net movies 4
Sports
Here, we look at the sports channels offered by both TV providers to see which one tops out.
Startimes sports channels
- Ligue 1
- Chinese Football League
- German Bundesliga
- Chinese boxing
- Serie A
- Wrestling
DSTV sports channels
- Ginx eSports
- Supersport channels
- Supersport variety
- Supersport blitz
From the above, we can see that DSTV offers the best in terms of sports. The premier league is very popular in Ghana and most people always want to watch it.
DSTV provides access to the premier league, something Startimes cannot do.
Music
We will now look at the music channels offered from both sides.
Startimes music channels
- MTV base
- MiTV
- Star Music
- Nigezie
DSTV music channels
- MTV base
- Trace Miki
- Trace naija
- Trace Muzika
- Trace JAMA
- Afro music channel
- Qwest TV
Once again, we see that DSTV takes the lead in terms of music as well. It has several great music channels when compared to the ones offered by Startimes.
News
Staying up-to-date with the news around the world and locally is very important. Here we get to see which TV provider offers the best access to live up-to-date news.
Startimes News Channels
- BBC
- TVC
- Fox News
- CCTV news
- Channels TV
- AIT
DSTV News Channels
- BBC News
- CCN international
- Fox news
DSTV offers the best news channels in Ghana at the moment. From the channels listed, it is quite easy to tell.
Graphic Quality
When it comes to the graphics category, DSTV is miles ahead of Startimes. In one of our previous articles, we found out that GOTV, which is a cheaper version of DSTV, had better graphics than Startimes.
This makes it evident that Startimes cannot compete with DSTV itself in terms of graphics. In this category, we see clearly that DSTV is better than Startimes.
Decoder Price
DSTV decoders are more pricey than Startimes decoders. Although the prices will normally depend on the time and place where the decoders were bought, the average price you can expect to pay for any of them is below.
DSTV Decoders
- DSTV Zappa decoder cost GHS 138
- DSTV Explora decoder cost GHS 499
- HD Zapper decoder with dish kit and a month subscription plan cost GHS 169
- DSTV Explora decoder with dish kit, installation tools, and smart LNB cost GHS 849
Startimes Decoders
- Decoder cost GHS 60
- Decoder with dish, cable, and LNB cost GHS 75
Subscription Payment
Both DSTV and Startimes offer many methods through which customers can pay for their subscription packages.
Customers who wish to renew their subscriptions can do so through the following methods which are available on both TV providers.
- MTN mobile money
- ATM payment
- Online payment
- Bank payment
- Agent payment
These methods make it easier for customers to make payments for their subscription plans on both platforms.
Customer Care
When it comes to customer care, both satellite TV providers offer the best services to their customers. Customers can contact both DSTV and Startimes on numbers provided to the public. Here are the numbers below.
DSTV contact
- +233 30 274 0540
- +233 244 740540
- SMS- 1779
Startimes contact
- 0242437888
Conclusion
DSTV and Startimes are quite popular in Ghana and both have many subscribers. However, it is quite clear now that Startimes cannot compete with DSTV.
DSTV is miles ahead in almost every category. DSTV is more expensive and caters towards the well-to-do in society while Startimes is a very affordable option that almost anyone can sign up for.
Its most expensive package does not even reach GHS 200. This makes Startimes more popular among the people.
However, when it comes to the delivery of entertainment, sports, quality, and news, DSTV carries the day.
The ultimate decision to decide on which one will purchase will depend on his or her pockets.
