While streaming services across the globe have accelerated in recent years, Africa’s step into the market will be a long play involving many moving parts that cannot be based on international experience.

The over-the-top (OTT) and video-on-demand (VoD) services market in Africa differs vastly from the North American and European markets, and a copy-and-paste model to accelerate the services locally will not work, says African OTT and VoD specialist firm Discover Digital MD Stephen Watson.

“There has already been strong growth in short-form and user-generated content in recent years and, now more than ever, we are seeing that good content can be shot at home – without studios and production teams.”

This emerges as streamed content increases across the continent as people facing various lockdowns, owing to the Covid-19 pandemic, produce and consume video content.

“The Covid-19 pandemic is creating a whole new wave of thinking and illustrates the potential market for user-generated content. Coming out of this, we will also have a far more digital-savvy consumer than before,” says Watson.

While linear television still has a place in Africa – more so than elsewhere in the world – these developments can support the emergence of more viable, sustainable VoD and OTT services across Africa.

However, African telcos need to be strategic in offering services they and their audiences can afford and content that resonates with their audiences, he warns.

Telcos entering the VoD and OTT space in the past tended to emulate the path of Netflex and its subsequent success, but have been unable to scale millions of viewers, despite offering zero-rated video streaming data in many regions.

Watson also points out that subscription pricing and payment models are challenges unique to much of the African continent, while key factors have to be taken into account, including aligning with audience interest, whether they are banked and unique selling points, says Watson.