SAVuka TV has entered the tightly-contested video-on-demand (VOD) market in SA through its new mobile television application.
The app that is launching today on Android allows content providers ownership of the content they produce, while consumers get local entertainment on the go.
To survive in this over-crowded market, SAVuka TV says its strategy is to provide short bursts of pay-TV-quality entertainment to people who have a few minutes to kill during the day.
"We're not focused on the binge viewer, but on the person who is on their way to school, work or town. The other differentiating factor is that our platform encourages mass ownership, with the hope that where there is ownership, then responsibility for success is also shared," says Siphamandla Kunene, SAVuka TV's creative producer.
Local is lekker
Created by Pecil Productions, SAVuka TV says it differs from most other VOD platforms on the South African market as it strictly provides local content. The videos, ranging from dramas, reality shows, documentaries and other lifestyle programmes are typically eight minutes in length and the content partners benefit from the profit share model - Sidla Sonke.
"SAVuka TV is groundbreaking in that it not only gives people entertainment anywhere, anytime but also gives multimedia creatives the freedom to be creative for its sake, and it won't hurt that they'll make some money in the process," says Kunene.
"The Sidla Sonke production funding model ensures mass ownership of content, with rights holders keeping them in perpetuity. Furthermore, SAVuka TV seeks to create and develop an audience that appreciates innovative, edgy and probing local content, directly on their mobile phones," Kunene notes.
SAVuka TV rolls out on the Android platform with six reality shows - Soap Stars, Straight back, Out and Living It, Salon Nightmares, Diski Hits and Mrs, and Behind the Pulpit.
"SAVuka TV content primarily seeks to engage and entertain our viewers with content that is intriguing and filled with high drama and parables. We hope that this will provide some solutions for our viewer's real life problems," says Percy Mthethwa, SAVuka TV's head of content.
"The content projects a positive image of black South Africans and provides them with free educational information they desperately need to make informed decisions."
SAVuka TV allows users to choose various payment options through PayGate via vukatv.com and subscriptions will range from R9.99 for a day, R19.99 for five days and R35.00 for a monthly subscription. Pay-Per-View prices are as follows: premium (R5.50 per view), fresh (R3.50 per view), and lite (R1.50/view).
It also caters for people with no access to smartphones. Each month the most watched shows will be available through the SAVuka TV video magazine editions on a DVD.
Business feasibility
There are a lot of VOD players that have failed to gain meaningful traction in SA but Kunene believes SAVuka TV will make it. He argues that most VOD models require a critical mass to ensure long term sustainability, and the service that is most adept at attracting this mass will be successful.
According to Kunene, SAVuka TV has already concluded deals with several independent producers, one of them has over 500 hours of cultural, spiritual and pan African documentaries.
"We are hoping to attract more content providers. Our recent experience suggests that we're going to have to prove the business feasibility of the SAVuka TV app first, before most content partners come on board."
Allaying the bandwidth cost concerns among consumers, Kunene says: "We have compiled and are continuously updating lists of all the free WiFi zones in townships and transport terminals, which we will publish on www.vukatv.com and the SAVuka TV app.
"Using existing infrastructure such as the Project Isizwe's free Internet zones, free Internet at taxi ranks and inside taxis, and affiliating with organisations such as Soweto Wireless User Group and WiTaxi will allow our audiences to subsidise some of these costs."
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