Purchase cable TV

Before you begin

Keep your secret key on your server and choose the right environment. Your application needs an order record, a confirmed recipient and a saved reference for each intended purchase.

Step 1: Load the available products

Call the cable TV product endpoint. Build your selection interface from the returned billers and products. Retain the exact product_code, current pricing and any product constraints. A provider name such as DStv is not a product code.

Step 2: Confirm the recipient

Call customer validation using product_code and smart_card_number. Show the returned customer name so the user can confirm it. Retain verify_token and send it unchanged with the purchase for that same customer.

Step 3: Save the order and reference

Generate an alphanumeric reference of 10–255 characters and save it with the intended recipient, product and expected debit amount. Prevent repeated button clicks while the request is pending. Keep the same reference for reconciliation.

Step 4: Send the purchase request

Submit this JSON structure to the cable TV purchase endpoint. Replace every example product code and recipient before use. The reference page includes complete examples for cURL, Node.js, PHP, Ruby and Python.

{
  "smart_card_number": "0123456789",
  "product_code": "CURRENT_CABLE_PRODUCT_CODE",
  "reference": "SMB202609160004",
  "verify_token": "TOKEN_FROM_VALIDATION"
}

Do not send an amount field for cable TV purchases. Send the customer number, product code, unique reference and the token returned by customer validation.

Step 5: Check and verify the result

Read data.status. Keep processing orders pending. Use transaction verification with the saved reference to reconcile the result, including after timeouts. Show a completed receipt only after a successful transaction is confirmed.

Step 6: Handle later updates

Use webhooks to receive updates and verify the reference before changing the order. Make the update safe to repeat. Keep a recovery process for unresolved orders and retain trace IDs for support.