Broadcast Media Africa recently sat down with Ms Tigist Kebede, Operations Director Of Habeshaview, ahead of the forthcoming OTT Streaming Platform And Content Management Summit, scheduled to hold on Tuesday, 21st – Wednesday, 22nd February 2023, at the Southern Sun The Cullinan, Cape Town, South Africa.
In the conversation, Ms Tigist Kebede indicated that streaming platforms have, since the outbreak of Covid19, transformed the way we consume content, thus shaping the entire content delivery ecosystem.
The following is an excerpt from BMA’s conversation with Tigist Kebede:
BMA: What influenced your decision to agree to participate in the 3rd International OTT And Streaming Platforms And Content Management Summit?
Tigist: I work specifically in the OTT/streaming industry, and it is great to take part as both a panellist and attendee to find out development industry and share experiences with fellow attendees. Our company, Habeshaview, started by providing a streaming service initially targeting the Ethiopian diaspora community globally and planning to expand to other African communities with carefully selected original and homegrown content. In time we will also be offering our premium and feature-rich IPTV / OTT service to broadcasters, network operators, Telcos, and media companies to customise under their own brand.
BMA: How would you describe the current transformation that is taking place in the OTT and streaming platforms and Content Management? How can practitioners take advantage?
Tigist: There has been a huge growth in the industry, especially during covid, with the choice of affordable and accessible OTT vendors giving the smallest studios and independent content creators to be able to monetise. This trend will continue, as we have seen with the popularity of FAST and AVOD services.
BMA: What is the biggest industry challenge faced at the moment concerning content creation, content distribution on the streaming platforms, and generating adequate revenues/funding for content and programmes that viewers/listeners want? How can these challenges be faced, specifically?
Tigist: Streaming platforms, the competition is fierce, with the big names still dominating the market with the ability to create original and exclusive contents to retain and attract new subscribers, even offering AVOD services. The larger studios choosing to start their own dedicated streaming service has limited what content is available. The increased cost of production or lack of funds has limited some content creators, especially independent ones. As a result, some subscribers are moving away from SVOD to AVOD or other free services and limiting revenue.
BMA: What can fellow industry professionals do or continue to do to improve local content and its distribution in the multi-platform environment?
Tigist: Funding is important. When I meet local content creators, in most cases, the first thing they mention to me is the lack of funding for production, followed by distribution and revenue. Providing access and a home for locally created content on their platform (if they have one), paying market price for the content, whichever model of distribution is agreed on and watching locally created content and talking and promoting the content to drive revenue.
BMA: All said, please tell us what you hope fellow participants will take away from this industry event.
Tigist: OTT and streaming has revolutionised how we consume content. This industry event will highlight the choice that content creators and OTT vendors have to actively generate revenue rather than depend on the big streamers only.
