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Nigerians spent N2bn on video streaming in 2014

By BusinessNews Staff on February 4, 2015

The seeming high cost of subscription for pay television and the lack of leisure time to watch long movies have been identified as reasons for the rising interest of Nigerians in Video on Demand streaming.

The VoD is a system that allows consumers to select and watch abridged video content of their choice and on the spot on Personal Computers, tablets, smartphones and television, using Chrome.

Aside high net worth Nigerians, it was discovered that workers, businessmen and even technology-savvy students spent over N2bn on video streaming subscription last year, going by the subscriber base of online streaming platforms in the country.

Of this amount, it was estimated that iROKOtv, a leading video streaming platform in the country, earned over N1bn from not less than 500,000 Nigerian subscribers at N2,000 yearly Average Revenue Per User.

The other platforms, AfriNolly, DoBox, 9fix, IbakaTV and RealNolly, among others, are said to have raked in about N1bn from almost one million subscribers at between N150 and N200 monthly subscription per user.

Away from Nigeria, iROKOtv is reputed to boast of about one million subscribers in 78 countries.

The African revenue, especially in Nigeria, with its massive population, is expected to increase by the end of this year, according to the latest Consumer Lab annual report released by telecommunications equipment manufacturer, Ericsson.

The Senior Advisor, Consumer Insights, Ericsson, Rebecka Angstrom, said, “The about N2bn being estimated to have been made in 2014 from video streaming in Nigeria is still a far cry from what would be made by 2015 ending given the high population in the country, which is still growing, and more so, the yet untapped opportunities in the market.”

Angstrom spoke at a video conferencing session with our correspondent in Lagos.

She added, “It is projected that by 2020, the Gross Domestic Product on video streaming in Nigeria will rise and provide not less than one million job opportunities across the lines – as the number of movies being produced will increase and the number of VoD platforms in the country will triple.”

According to her, what is being spent on video streaming platform subscription in a year is not up to four per cent of what is spent on pay TV annually, adding, “So, viewers have now learnt how to save money by gradually adapting to video streaming and patronising VoD platforms.”

She added that since Nigerians were too busy “chasing money” and have little or no time for relaxation, even after they must have spent a fortune on pay TV subscription, the VoDs came in handy since one could view them on the spot.

“They (Nigerians) could watch a video on their devices from their offices, during spare times when not at home, and even in the traffic in a place like Lagos, or while on the move. More so, viewers are currently shifting towards easy-to-use on-demand services that allow cross platform access to video content,” Angstrom noted.

A subscriber and Lagos-based banker, Mrs. Patricia Oduh, attributed the increasing expenditure on VoDs to the growing lack of ingenuity on the part of pay TV platforms.

She said, “The movies and programmes on pay TV are unnecessarily long and most people don’t have the time to spend on such; so, we eventually have a case where what we pay to the likes of DSTV, StarTimes etc., are not fully optimised. But with video streaming, the movies are condensed and made more interesting, and can be viewed on the spot.

“Also, the pay TV platforms repeat movies often and that gets one tired. I spend N7,800 monthly subscribing to pay TV, which is N93,000 annually; but with the VoDs, I spend just about N2,000 yearly and you have a variety of movie options at your disposal.”

The Chief Executive Officer of iROKOtv, Jason Njoku, said the company’s vision was to have one million subscribers in the country by 2020, adding, “If we can reach that number, then iROKO will be a billion dollar company. We simply target $1bn. That is what I believe Nollywood, Nigeria and West Africa deserves.

“As a billion dollar media and technology company, we curate and export Nigerian culture globally. The industry now needs us as much as we need them.”

Perhaps because of the enormous opportunities in the market, telecommunications company, MTN acquired AfriNolly and DoBox. Both are said to pose stiff competition to iROKOtv.

The Public Relations and Protocol Manager, MTN Nigeria, Mr. Funso Aina, said, “The MTN DoBox and AfriNolly came as a game changer to the movie industry in Nigeria. Those who place premium value on watching movies on-the-go through the use of cutting-edge technology have been adopting it significantly since it was launched.”

[Punch]

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