The appetite for streaming services in South Africans has opened an opportunity for localised content providers to enter the streaming market.
This is according to Justin Hewelt, PayMedia, brand and product marketing global director. He was speaking on the sidelines of the Interactive Advertising Bureau Summit in Kyalami, north of Johannesburg.
Hewelt says the low prices offered by streaming services makes them very attractive and so does the fact that one doesn’t need to invest in new technology if one wants to stream.
Acccording to Statista, Netflix subscriptions in South Africa are expected to more than double in the next two years.
But Hewelt says international streaming service providers have not put resources into local content production.
“There does not seem to be a huge interest by streaming services to produce localised content.”
He says the South African market, in particular, is clearly hungry for local content.
“It’s clear that local narratives are very important in the South African market.”
He says all the pieces for successful local streaming services are starting to fall into place. That the rapid penetration and deceasing prices of cellphones, together with efforts being made to ensure that everyone has access to the internet, make the market ripe for local streaming services.
