High season for sector as local content demand surges

In an upmarket apartment block in Kilimani, Nairobi, a long queue of men and women is making the curtains of neighbouring flats flutter.

It’s casting day for one of Kenya’s most popular television shows, and the actors are lining up to become a part of Kenya’s local content industry.
The scene is an indicator of the growing local content industry, which according to industry figures raked in Sh3 billion in revenues last year.

That figure is projected to grow to Sh40 billion in the next couple of years, carrying with it the potential to create 250,000 new jobs on an annual basis.

It’s no wonder, then, that analysing exactly how to tap into this growth area is an issue being examined closely by strategic thinkers at some Kenyan companies.

This year, according to research group Ovum, will be a year of “creative destruction” for media, as traditional sectors attempt to relocate, retain and monetise their audiences online.

“Technology will continue to be at the heart of the media landscape. Vendors, enterprises and entrepreneurs will continue to innovate to develop proprietary technologies to deliver strategic and operational advantage,” said the firm in its Media Trends 2010 report.

In Kenya, the corporate scramble is for content that will entertain or educate viewers in a variety of formats ranging from the more traditional television broadcasts to the emerging social websites such as YouTube, and is set to change the local media landscape in ways previously unseen.

From the traditional broadcasting houses to the fringe players such as the internet service providers and the upstarts – mobile companies – the business case is compelling.
Kenyan investors are mostly eying new developments in the theatre, culture, visual arts, film, music and new media circles.

Kenyan viewers appear to be more appreciative of locally produced content today than they were 10 or even two years ago.

Recent research by Synnovate reveals that Kenyan sitcoms and dramas are already the most popular amongst the country’s three million television viewers.

This has driven the programming strategy of media houses such as Citizen TV, KBC and NTV, which have actively included local content in their programming.

But the convergence of technologies is also making the non-traditional players to challenge traditional broadcasters for a share of the content pie.

Already, Safaricom and Kenya Data Networks allow subscribers to access video content, and internet service provider Wananchi is set to launch a local content division that will supply ready-made programming to the market.

Wednesday evening, industry stakeholders met to discuss the opportunities in the budding film and content industry.

“There were a lot of incentives in the last budget that have driven investors to this field, for example the tax waivers on film equipment is spurring more people to enter the field,” said John Matogo of Strathmore University who is organising the forum.