Top Stories

STOCKHOLM: Ericsson has picked up more than 2,500 hours of programming from a range of providers, including Viacom and CBS Studios International, for Nuvu, its SVOD platform developed for mobile operators primarily on the African continent.

LOS ANGELES: Frederic Chesnais, the CEO of Atari, is attending DISCOP Johannesburg this year to unveil the gaming company's television plans.

The SVOD sector in the Middle East and Africa is forecast to have nearly 20 million paying SVOD subscribers by 2021, up from 3.7 million expected by end-2016, according to Digital TV Research. Netflix is expected to reach 3.37 million subs in the MEA region by 2021, followed by Icflix with 1.85 million, iRoko with 1.55 million, Starz Play with 1.39 million and ShowMax with 992,000.

CAPE TOWN: DISCOP Johannesburg is hosting its first-ever Women in Media Awards, celebrating successful female media leaders and the organizations that they represent.

ABU DHABI: Image Nation Abu Dhabi is due to begin production on three new feature films in the fourth quarter of 2016, with Majid Al Ansari (Zinzana, Netflix) serving as executive producer on the projects.

JOHANNESBURG: DISCOP Johannesburg has planned a pitching competition for its November edition, open to producers with projects in the genres of series, documentaries, formats and animation.

JOHANNESBURG/LOS ANGELES: Organizers of the 2016 DISCOP Johannesburg market and co-production forum have revealed a record number of exhibit bookings.

LONDON: Discovery Communications is expanding its business in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), partnering with BHS Media for a new free-to-air lifestyle channel in Farsi.

LONDON: TRACE is rolling out three brand-new music channels in Africa that are due to launch on September 1.

SÃO PAULO: Econet Media has inked a three-season deal with Globo for the rights to broadcast live games from Brazil's leading soccer tournaments, with English commentary, on its Kwesé-branded platforms.