The challenging economic times of today make consumers review everything about their lives, assessing every expense with a view to ascertaining real value, MultiChoice Zimbabwe’s head of corporate affairs and public relations Charity Njanji has said.
This is in response to the information, entertainment and education offered by streaming and TV platforms across the world today as these are seen to improve the lives of viewers and listeners through the power of their content.
Resultantly, she said, “we all look at the broadcast and streaming platforms we subscribe to and decide whether they are providing real returns on our investment”. MultiChoice is Africa’s leading entertainment platform, which offers a wide range of products and services, including DStv, GOtv, Showmax, M-Net, SuperSport, Irdeto and KingMakers.
In an interview with IndependentXtra this week, Njanji said the area of content creation on the streaming and TV platforms is under the spotlight.
“It’s useful to think of an expense as an investment and not just a transaction in which we swop a payment for a product or a service,” Njanji said.
“This is relevant in the area of entertainment, as the value we obtain from entertainment is not just about the service we receive. It’s also about investing in an ecosystem that provides value for audiences, for a wider industry of working professionals, as well as a rich cultural community.”
A TV platform can have a powerful impact on creating local content. Besides, and also more importantly, they create jobs and the rich culture they help establish. Producing homegrown African content means that an entire industry of workers must be engaged to work on that body of work.
“From producers and directors, all the way through to actors, hair and make-up artists, catering crews, hospitality workers and transport drivers, all of these livelihoods are supported when a TV network commissions a local show,” she said.
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The show could be a reality hit like Big Brother Naija in West Africa, a popular telenovela like Mpali in Zambia or a true crime documentary like The Last Door in East Africa.
All these will have a similar economic impact, as the show directly employs creatives and services providers.
The content attracts viewers, which in turn leads to the support of vast numbers of people in downstream industries.
MultiChoice Africa, the parent company of dozens of African channels, has amassed a local content library of around 84 000 hours.
This resource grows by about 12% each, making the group the largest producer of original content on the African continent.
Ensuring there is a healthy pipeline of new, homegrown productions, money from every MultiChoice subscription helps to fund MultiChoice Talent Factory (MTF) academies. “This is the true value that comes from subscriber investment,” Njanji said.
“Every monthly subscription goes towards creating film-sector jobs, supporting extended families through this income, and creating content that reflects African culture, growing African pride and self-respect and taking our deep storytelling tradition to new levels, with the power of new technology.”
One of the MTF 2023 alumni is Marvellous Matswimbo, one of the 60 students trained each year in an intensive one-year course on film and TV production, 20 each at MTF academies in Lusaka for Southern Africa, Nairobi for East Africa, and Lagos for West Africa.
World-class MultiChoice international sports coverage, through DStv, also reflects the passions of the continent, whether it be for watching Champions League football, the Rugby World Cup or the Olympic Games. All are shown at a fraction of the price paid in other parts of the world. “But adding true value must also involve giving back to the communities that sustain a business. Being part of a community means meeting social responsibilities in the environmental, social and governance sphere,” she said.
“A wide range of financial, community and social investments are all made possible by the investments of subscribers to MultiChoice.
Subscription packages may change, technology may evolve and prices may be adjusted, but the goal and outcomes remain unchanged: improving lives across the African continent through the power of entertainment.”
