The Media Online’s weekly round-up of media business moves, all in one place
The BIG move: Naritive takes its Attention Intelligence Platform further with STUDIO launch
African-born adtech company Naritive has expanded its Attention Intelligence Platform with STUDIO, a new creative environment designed to help brands, agencies and creative teams build, test, preview and approve interactive digital advertising before campaigns go to market.
The expanded platform brings together Naritive’s ad technology, attention data and campaign learnings, allowing marketers to use attention data across the creative, measurement and media-buying process.
“We have spent years measuring what people do with digital advertising. Now we are using that intelligence to reshape how advertising gets made in the first place,” says Nick van Zyl-Smith, CEO of Naritive.
“The industry does not need another dashboard filled with delivery metrics. It needs a practical way to connect media investment with human attention, memory and commercial value.”
STUDIO is the first of four connected capabilities being developed by Naritive. The company says Create, Analyse and Activate will follow in the coming months.
People moves
Lobengula appoints Terry McKenna as executive creative director
Lobengula Advertising has appointed award-winning South African creative Terry McKenna as executive creative director.
McKenna brings almost three decades of experience to the role, having worked at Grey Worldwide, TBWA\Hunt Lascaris, Joe Public, Ogilvy Johannesburg and The Odd Number.
His career has included work on brands such as KFC, Cadbury, Castle Lager, DStv, SuperSport, Standard Bank, Steers, Nike, Mercedes-Benz and Samsung.
The appointment comes as Lobengula continues to build its creative offering and agency profile.
Business moves
Arena Holdings partners with Montreux Jazz Festival Franschhoek following debut
Music Arena, a division of Arena Holdings, has entered into a strategic partnership with Montreux Jazz Festival Franschhoek following the festival’s inaugural edition in March 2026.
The partnership is intended to support the festival’s development as an international cultural and lifestyle event with an African base.
The first edition, held from 27 to 29 March in the Franschhoek Wine Valley, featured almost 40 South African and international artists, including Róisín Murphy, Robert Glasper, Bilal, Thandiswa Mazwai, Mandisi Dyantyis and Kesivan Naidoo’s amaBig Band Experience.
Read the full story on The Media Online
Disney+ appoints Edelman South Africa as PR agency partner
Disney+ South Africa has appointed Edelman South Africa as its new public relations agency partner.
Edelman will support Disney+ communications in South Africa, including media relations, press materials, talent opportunities and upcoming announcements.
The transition is expected to take place over the coming days, with the Edelman team set to introduce itself to media and begin sharing Disney+ news, updates and opportunities.
Disney+ said the change would not affect its commitment to relationships with South Africa’s media community.
Field Force launches FieldIQ market intelligence division
Field Force has launched FieldIQ, a market intelligence division designed to give brands a combined view of shopper behaviour, in-store conditions and sales movement.
The offering brings together market research and field data to help brands identify changes in shopper behaviour, competitor activity and in-store barriers to purchase across formal and informal trade.
FieldIQ is part of Provantage’s FieldForce business. General manager Carmen Brown says the division builds on FieldForce’s existing field sales and merchandising capabilities.
“Now, we’re building on this with an offering that provides a comprehensive view of the landscape, empowering clients with a 360-degree view of consumers that connects shoppers, outlets and sales,” says Brown.
The offering also links to GoFix, part of the FieldForce solution, which can implement physical changes in-store once potential barriers to purchase have been identified.
Publicis Groupe Africa marks 100 years of Publicis Groupe
Publicis Groupe Africa has marked Publicis Groupe’s centenary, celebrating 100 years of the global communications group at the 2026 Giraffe Awards.
Publicis Groupe was founded in Paris in 1926 and has since expanded into communications, marketing, technology and business transformation.
The centenary celebration included A Lion Never Gives Up, a film reflecting on the group’s history and future.
“This centenary is about much more than longevity,” says Koo Govender, CEO of Publicis Groupe Africa.
“For 100 years, Publicis has continuously adapted to meet the future, embracing new technologies, entering new markets and evolving alongside the changing needs of clients and consumers.”
Govender said the same qualities of resilience, innovation and adaptability were shaping the role of African talent within the group.
Independent newsrooms grow digital audiences with transformation fund support
Independent South African newsrooms are expanding their digital reach, launching online platforms and exploring new revenue opportunities six months into the first R10.5 million funding round of the Digital News Transformation Fund (DNTF).
The fund’s half-year progress report, covering January to June 2026, shows that 21 independent newsrooms have used the funding to strengthen their digital operations. Ten have launched their first websites, while more than 300 stories have been published by newsrooms starting their digital journeys.
More than 65 journalists and media staff have also received digital training, with the programme supporting publishers serving township, rural and other underserved communities.
Among them is The Kokstad Advertiser, a 144-year-old local newspaper that has launched its first digital presence. The publication has grown to more than 32 000 followers and reaches up to 354 000 people a month across South Africa, according to DNTF project manager Muhammad Luqman Jamal.
“We’ve gone from being accessible only to local print subscribers to reaching over 32 000 followers and up to 354 000 people a month across South Africa,” says Jamal.
The DNTF divides its support into three levels: Build, for newsrooms establishing digital foundations; Grow, for publishers expanding an existing digital presence; and Engage, for more digitally mature publishers developing new revenue models.
SABC warns against TV licence scam
The South African Broadcasting Corporation’s TV Licence Division has warned the public about a fraudulent email targeting TV licence account holders.
The email claims recipients have outstanding TV licence payments and face penalties and possible litigation. It directs recipients to download an attachment or click on a link and provide personal information.
The scam email carries the subject line: “TV LICENCE STATEMENT ATTACHED TO AVOID PENALTIES & LITIGATION ON YOUR IDENTITY”.
It is being sent from tim.harris@absamail.co.za, an address the SABC says does not belong to the broadcaster or any of its authorised collection partners.
The SABC said official TV licence renewal communications are sent from renewals@sabc.co.za, businesstvlic@sabc.co.za and dealers@sabc.co.za.
The broadcaster has urged recipients to exercise caution when receiving TV licence communications from other email addresses.
France named FAME Week Africa’s 2026 Destination Focus
France will be the 2026 Destination Focus at FAME Week Africa, bringing French and African creatives, producers, buyers, distributors and cultural organisations together to explore collaboration and business opportunities.
The programme will run from 28 to 30 October at the Cape Town International Convention Centre before moving to the Rockefeller Hotel from 30 October to 1 November.
Activities will span film, television, music, fashion, design, gaming, publishing, digital creativity and cultural entrepreneurship.
The programme will include French producers exploring co-production opportunities with African counterparts, while French buyers and distributors will be introduced to African content. Speed-networking sessions, industry discussions, the Création Africa programme and the African premiere of The Phantom of the Opera (below) will also form part of the programme.
Radisson Hotel Group’s Creator Hub expands to 400 properties
Radisson Hotel Group’s Creator Hub platform has expanded to more than 400 properties across 64 countries less than a year after launch.
The platform connects nano content creators with hotels, giving creators access to properties in exchange for photo and video content.
Radisson says the model is designed to help hotels source creator-led content without traditional media costs, as travellers increasingly use social platforms and user-generated content when researching destinations.
Creator Hub has also received international recognition for its approach to creator-led travel marketing.
Absa Experience Design Collab focuses on trust in digital experiences
Absa’s 2026 Experience Design Collab (XDC) will focus on the role of trust as artificial intelligence, automation and digital technologies reshape customer experiences.
Now in its third year, the bank’s flagship experience-design platform will take place under the theme Designing for Trust: The Currency of the Future.
The 2026 programme shifts the focus from the future of digital experiences towards how human-centred design can deliver measurable business outcomes, strengthen customer relationships and create commercial value.
The programme will feature two complementary events aimed at broadening participation in experience design across Absa and the wider industry.
The conversation forms part of Absa Experience Design Collab 2026 on 30 September.
LUKS Group adds Weber to premium lifestyle portfolio
LUKS Group has taken over distribution of Weber in South Africa and the broader Southern African region, adding the outdoor cooking brand to its portfolio of international lifestyle brands.
Weber joins brands including Traeger, Gozney, Meater, Yeti, Parkit, Pale Blue, Velcro and Lamy.
“We are incredibly proud to welcome Weber and its team into the LUKS Group family,” says Dustin Botha, co-founder and managing director of LUKS Group.
“Few brands have had the impact Weber has had on outdoor cooking globally and in South Africa. There is an enormous amount of heritage, trust and passion behind the brand.”
Tether releases open-source AI translation models for African languages
Tether AI Research has released open-source AI translation models designed to run on smartphones, laptops and other devices, with a focus on underserved African-language communities.
The QVAC TranslatePsy-AfriSLM model supports 19 African languages, while the smaller AfriNano model covers eight. A parallel TranslatePsy-EuroNano release supports nine European languages.
The models process translations on-device, allowing them to operate without an internet connection and keeping user data off third-party cloud servers.
Tether says the technology could expand access to AI-powered education, health information and other digital services in communities where connectivity is limited.
TranslatePsy-AfriSLM supports Hausa, Amharic, Yoruba, Lingala, Swahili, Igbo, Zulu, Somali, Oromo, Malagasy, Kinyarwanda, Xhosa, Afrikaans, Wolof, Luganda, Nyanja, Shona, Tswana and Southern Sotho.
“Language should not determine who can benefit from artificial intelligence,” says Paolo Ardoino, CEO of Tether.
Campaign moves
340ml becomes 330ml for Windhoek campaign
South African band 340ml is temporarily changing its name to 330ml as part of a campaign with Windhoek Lager marking the return of the brand’s 330ml bottle.
The partnership coincides with the band’s return to live performances and will launch Windhoek’s Midweek Sessions, a series of intimate live-music experiences.
“Windhoek and 340ml share a belief in keeping things real,” says Keval Ramraj, marketing manager at Windhoek Beer South Africa.
“The return of our 330ml Lager bottle coincided with the return of four musicians whose music has always felt honest and unmistakably their own.”
947 Joburg Day brings Samsung Galaxy experience to festivalgoers
Samsung Galaxy partnered with 947 at Joburg Day on 5 September at Crocodile Creek Polo Club in Lanseria, bringing its latest foldable devices to festivalgoers.
The Galaxy Hangout gave visitors an opportunity to experience the Galaxy Z Fold8 Ultra, Fold8 and Flip8, while Samsung’s “Everyone’s a Headliner” message extended to the festival mainstage.
The activation encouraged festivalgoers to capture and share performances, crowd moments and their own experiences using Galaxy devices.
Making moves
SAB Foundation opens applications for Tholoana Enterprise Programme
Applications are open for the SAB Foundation’s Tholoana Enterprise Programme, an 18-month business growth programme delivered by Fetola for established South African entrepreneurs.
The programme targets commercially proven businesses with paying customers, recurring revenue and evidence of market demand. Support includes mentoring focused on leadership, business systems, financial capability, market opportunities and sustainable growth.
Applicants must be South African citizens, majority shareholders and full-time key decision-makers in their businesses. Businesses must be at least 51% black-owned and managed, operate in South Africa and have traded consistently for at least two years.
Applicants must also demonstrate a viable business model and credible potential to reach new customers or larger markets, and commit to the full 18-month programme.
