Some of South Africa’s best loved locally produced TV shows will shortly be available on an over-the-top (OTT) platform after the South African Broadcasting Corporation agreed on a deal with Viu, operated by PCCW Media and Vuclip.
This means programmes such as Uzalo and Skeem Saam will no longer be available on YouTube once the exclusive digital rights migrate to Viu at the end of February. As part of the agreement, Viu will also gain access to a slate of premium library content for a period of 24-months.
“The SABC is proud to have partnered with Viu SA on this exciting new initiative,” said Madoda Mxakwe, SABC’s group chief executive officer in a statement. “As a broadcaster, it is imperative that we continuously move with the times and ensure that our programmes are available through VOD platforms.”
Viu has also secured Video On Demand (VOD) rights to 18 South African favourites from the SABC catalogue. This includes critically-acclaimed series The Docket, as well as selected dramas and telenovelas namely Yizo Yizo, Single Galz, Taryn and Sharon, Ngempela, The Sober Companion, When We Were Black, and Emoyeni to name a few. All programmes licensed exclusively to Viu, remain the property of the SABC.
Mxakwe said Viu’s experience in delivering and monetising OTT and VOD service would help the pubic broadcaster ensure universal access to the country’s “rich home-grown content”.
“This strongly aligns with our strategic objective to identify new revenue streams and, in this particular case, increasing revenue through sub-licensing SABC’s owned Intellectual Property (IP), specifically in the video entertainment space,” he said.
Viu country manager, Ryan Solovei, said the company believed in the power of South African stories, and looked forward to “increasing access to these stories to as many people as possible through our digital platform”.
The service can be accessed on connected devices (mobile, tablet and laptop), through the mobile App which is available for free download on IOS and the Google Play store, and on the web at www.viu.com. The Viu app boasts great such as the capability to download content to watch offline later, as well as a data-friendly feature allowing you to select your preferred resolution.
