AfriCam back online soon

Johannesburg, 29 Jan 2002

AfriCam is about to go live again, with a new business model. An interactive book has also been launched to track AfriCam`s history.

This follows the South African High Court`s approval of a bid by a consortium of investors to buy the business of AfriCam.com. The consortium, headed by original founder and Real Time Travel Connection MD Paul Clifford, also includes founder Graham Wallington, former CEO Peter Armitage, "adventurer" Alex Wills and Djuma Game Reserve owners Jurie Moolman, Pippa Moolman and Campbell Scott.

Armitage reports that the consortium`s bid was approved despite "spirited" bids from around four other consortia. While the new business model is still being finalised, Armitage says AfriCam is likely to be mainly a subscription site, with a limited amount of free content.

He says it is hoped that South African corporates may sponsor sections of the site, making it possible to offer more of the content for free in future. The company will be based at the Real Time Travel Connection offices in Johannesburg.

"We expect to go live within the next two weeks," he says. "We will start off with two or three cameras, then scale up quite quickly after that."

Armitage says the intention is to focus on South African game reserves, but cameras are still in place in other sites around the world, and they could be reactivated at a later stage.

AfriCam`s rise to one of SA`s most popular Web sites, its fall into liquidation late last year, and its subsequent "rise from the ashes" is now being chronicled online, in an interactive book (www.africambook.com). Armitage says the AfriCam story is to be released in published form in June or July. Meanwhile, the book is growing in interactive form online, and dedicated "AfriCammers" are already submitting their favourite photographs and personal comments for inclusion in the book.