MIP AFRICA: While many major international players have backtracked significantly on their ambitions in Africa this year, others have stepped them up, leading to fears among some local producers of a new era of cultural colonialism.

MultiChoice’s recent original Shaka iLembe

South Africa-headquartered pay TV group MultiChoice has seen numerous international players attempt to challenge its position of dominance since the streaming boom, commissioning headline-grabbing and big-budget local originals to sit alongside their Western-made series and films.

This resulted in budgets for original productions shooting up and a scramble for talent – a situation Nomsa Philiso, CEO of general entertainment at MultiChoice, says has settled down now the challenging economics of streaming have been laid bare.

“This business has a way of equalising itself. Of course, when you come into a territory you have big budgets thrown around. But you soon find out what happens. We’re at that point now where everything is level,” says Philiso.

“Now you won’t hear producers telling you about the better budgets in dollars. It was a blip where we had a lot of producers move to other streamers because the budgets were better and ‘the future was brighter.’ But you know the economics of streaming – you can throw in all the money, but the margins are small.”

Indeed, the trend in 2024 has been for many of these platforms to abandon previously ambitious expansion plans in Africa to focus on Europe and North America in the face of economic uncertainty.

Most notable of these was Amazon, which despite being one of the world’s wealthiest companies, ceased ordering new shows for its streamer Prime Video from Africa earlier this year, as part of a strategy to “rebalance and pivot” its resources.

Others that have jumped ship include BritBox, the international streaming service from BBC Studios, which withdrew from South Africa on August 30.

Nomsa Philiso

Meanwhile, Liam Keelan, Disney’s senior VP of original productions in Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA), was non-committal when asked about the streamer’s plans for originals in Africa at the recent Edinburgh TV Festival.

“At the moment we’re focusing on the main European markets. We’re still quite young in our journey. It’s not to say we never would. There are European markets where we are active but haven’t commissioned yet. It’s about timing, really,” Keelan told delegates.

Following the Amazon news earlier this year, Nigerian TV producer Mo Abudu, CEO of EbonyLife Group, slammed the international streamers and studios for cutting back on African production, accusing them of “a lack of respect” for the continent.

“In the face of these challenges, it is imperative that we, as Nigerians and Africans, rise above and build our own infrastructure, creating and serving our markets with pride and resilience. I firmly believe in the potential within us, and in the face of challenges, see opportunities for growth and self-reliance,” said Abudu.

Not all international players have walked away from Africa, however, and Abudu had a message to these international players.

“To the international organisations that recognise our worth, we extend our heartfelt appreciation. Your decision to stay, partner and collaborate with us is a testament to the shared commitment to not only growing the continent today but also for the generations that will follow,” Abudu said.

“Let us embrace the challenges, celebrate the opportunities, and collectively contribute to the thriving and resilient future of our beloved continent.”

Meanwhile, there have been major developments at MultiChoice since US cable giant Comcast bought into the African company’s streaming service Showmax last year, prompting a revamp of the SVoD platform.

Then France’s Vivendi committed to acquiring MultiChoice in a deal that values the company at around US$3bn and gives the Canal+ owner greater access to a continent with the world’s fastest growing and youngest population.

Formed in South Africa in 1985, MultiChoice expanded across Africa in the early 1990s with packages including live English football matches and local shows. Its assets include major satellite television DStv, digital terrestrial TV service GOtv, sports broadcasting network SuperSport and premium TV channel M-Net.

As the largest producer of African content globally, MultiChoice’s recent high-performing originals include Shaka iLembe, Queen Modjadji, Spinners, Wyfie, Catch Me a Killer and Adulting.

History-based epic drama Queen Modjadji

Philiso points to Showmax’s recent acquisition of the forthcoming Nigerian superhero animated series Iyanu, which it will launch in 44 African countries next year, as an example of how it plans to ensure African stories are not only told by Africans, but are also available to watch on the continent in future.

“African stories are finally being told largely by Africans, but it’s also time for African audiences to be among the first to see African stories, as a common courtesy,” said Philiso in the press release announcing the acquisition.

“Even today, an Oscar-winning film like Nowhere in Africa is available, well, nowhere in Africa. There are numerous examples like that, but stories about Africa should be told not just with Africans, but to Africans.”

Philiso says she couldn’t stand by and leave landmark series Iyanu – commissioned out of the US by Warner Bros Discovery-owned Cartoon Network and its streamer Max – to be left inaccessible to African viewers due to Max’s unavailability on the continent.

Created by Nigerian producer Roye Okupe, founder of YouNeek Studios, the series highlights efforts towards ‘storytelling sovereignty,’ where previously underrepresented creators are given control of their narratives, stories and histories. However, if a show like Iyanu isn’t made widely available in African markets, it highlights an ongoing power imbalance between Africa and other continents.

“We realised we’re behind the curve in terms of us being the ones that tell our own stories. It’s something we’re being very intentional about to accelerate. But we also have issues of access in Africa, around things like data streaming and electricity,” says Philiso.

Crime thriller book adaptation Catch Me a Killer from MultiChoice

“Where it’s possible we try to make sure that the offering is available in many forms and is easy to access. [MultiChoice] is not very strong in animation, so we have to partner smartly with companies that align with our vision,” adds Philiso, who cites currency fluctuations between African countries as among the challenges facing the company.

This comes against a backdrop of stiff competition from Netflix, which has recently reaffirmed its commitment to sub-Saharan Africa following fears among local production communities it might ‘do an Amazon.’

Dorothy Ghettuba, Netflix’s director of content for Africa, told the Durban FilmMart in July the global streamer wants to “entertain the world” by telling it local stories from Africa, where it is “here to stay.”

Speaking on a panel with South African producers Jayan Moodley and Katleho Ramaphakela, Ghettuba used Moodley’s Keeping Up With the Kandasamys and Ramaphakela’s How to Ruin Christmas as examples of the kind of authentic storytelling Netflix is looking to repeat.

Like her fellow execs in markets such as the UK, Ghettuba said Netflix is not looking to be pitched potential international hits. Instead, a show must have local appeal first and foremost and, if it isn’t working domestically, it won’t be recommissioned, no matter how well it might be performing abroad, according to Ghettuba.

Dorothy Ghettuba

Under Ghettuba’s tenure, Netflix debuted its first African original, Queen Sono, in 2020 before commissioning originals such as Blood & Water, Beauty Savage, Far From Home, Blood Sisters, Unseen, Young Famous & African, Country Queen, King of Jo’burg and The Brave Ones.

So far, Netflix’s originals slate in Africa has focused on shows from Nigeria and South Africa, including the dance-themed drama Jiva!, created by Busisiwe Ntintili and Bakang Sebatjane. As to other countries in Africa, Ghettuba reportedly said Netflix is taking a “step by step” approach towards expansion.

“We’re in South Africa; that’s the main focus for us. We are looking at Nigeria as well. And then, for the rest of Africa, it’s very optimistic. We do find these titles from time to time. The idea for us is to keep on growing. We are so committed to Africa,” said Ghettuba.

C21 understands some local producers in South Africa feel that for all Netflix’s commissions, the fact it has no physical presence anywhere in Africa and its team operates from an EMEA HQ in Amsterdam is a problem.

Netflix was once famed for giving execs decision-making autonomy when it comes to local commissioning, which allowed them to move quickly and roll the dice on risky ideas that other commissioners would dither over. Many of these paid off, many of them didn’t.

More recently, as part of its efforts to rein in spending, Netflix has embarked on a course correction that has seen it commission more conscientiously, mitigating risk while attempting to appeal to as large a base as possible in many markets.

Producers in South Africa and Nigeria were not immune to the unceremonious axing of projects that occurred in numerous markets. Together with the Amazon news, the rug was well and truly pulled from local producers’ feet, says Ntintili.

Busisiwe Ntintili

“The first quarter of this year was devastating for the local industry in South Africa. A lot of producers had put a lot of hope in these new studios coming into town and were wooed by promises made about building something together,” says Ntintili, who worked with Netflix on Jiva! and is now developing a high-octane thriller with a local broadcaster in South Africa.

A re-calibration has had to take place in South Africa, with many producers taking measures to ensure their survival while others remain in precarious positions, adds the writer, who is co-founder and executive producer of Sidewalk Productions.

One consequence of the arrival of international streamers in markets such as South Africa has been to shock local buyers into stepping up their activities to compete with the new players and retain talent. Ntintili agrees with MultiChoice’s Philiso that local producers have realised the grass isn’t always greener.

“To survive we have to have local broadcasting. Yes, we live in a global world, but once you have big tech companies moving into entire territories it does something weird to the integrity of the storytelling,” says Ntintili, who praises recent MultiChoice productions such as Shaka Ilembe, Queen Modjadji and Wyfie for their authenticity.

For Ntintili, the African media market remains an “untapped goldmine,” waiting to be potentially explored by international players. But that word ‘explored’ could so easily be interchanged with ‘exploited,’ given the long and dark history of Western interference in Africa.

Without the lucrative residuals that are baked into most TV deals in other work-for-hire markets such as the US, there are concerns African creatives are being exploited. Masseka Game Studio founder and tech entrepreneur Teddy Kossoko told C21 last year he had seen evidence of US and European distributors and streamers taking advantage of creators in Africa by locking them into “abusive” low-value contracts that tie up all rights to their IP.

Ntintili, who attended SeriesMania in Lille earlier this year, says: “Netflix and MultiChoice are going head-to-head and no one else is really coming close. Canal+’s buy-out has come as a surprise, but it’s clear they want to be a big player in Africa, having already had a presence in the French-speaking markets. If they can combine that with the English-speaking markets, who knows what that will bring.

Netflix’s dance-themed drama Jiva!

“Some are excited, some are nervous about another foreign entity coming into the African continent and what that means. Are we looking at a situation where the new colonialism is a colonialism of content? These are questions we have to ask ourselves. Business is business and capitalism is capitalism. Most people only have their own interests at heart.

“It’s good to have competition and have global players. But as Africans, we need to be creating our own platforms as well. That is the future, whether it means creating studios or distribution pipelines. People underestimate the amount of wealth that is in Africa. There is an immense amount of wealth here. But how do we redirect it to the right places?

“The creative economy hasn’t been taken as seriously as traditional industries like mining. It’s about educating investors about the opportunities that exist in the creative economy.

“There are going to be some interesting things combining investment with technology and young people doing interesting things coming out in the next five to 10 years. That makes me excited,” she adds, pointing to the vibrancy of film and TV coming out of countries such as Ghana, Senegal and Kenya.

For Ntintili, cross-country collaborations between African creatives will be key to the future of the continent’s media sector. By ensuring those who mine the storytelling potential of each country have roots that lead back to the continent, a new era of potential cultural colonialism may be avoided.