Broadcasting
CNN Marketplace: Filmmaker Chris Ihidero Extols Benefits of Streaming Giants on Nollywood
Chris Ihidero, Nollywood filmmaker says that the Nigerian film industry has the capacity to produce great original content of global quality if the industry is adequately funded.
Chris Ihidero, Veteran Nollywood filmmaker
Ihidero made this argument on the popular CNN special, MarketPlace Africa while discussing the recent attention the industry is enjoying from global players, especially giants like Netflix, Showmax, and Canal+.
Currently in its seventh season, Marketplace Africa is a CNN Special covering the macro business trends impacting the region and profiling the continent’s key industries and corporations.
‘‘Nollywood has been at the forefront of showcasing Africa in a certain way over the years. What’s beginning to happen is a recognition of Nollywood’s possibilities, Ihidero said.”
“What the partnerships with international streaming services like Netflix have done is to first show value. That association immediately ascribes quality to you and raises your value proposition. It’s removing all the shackles around creativity.”
Analysis from Digital TV Research projects that global streaming revenue will likely rise over the next four years to one hundred billion dollars.
For Ihidero and his colleagues in the industry, this presents a unique opportunity to show what they are capable of.
Ihidero, who recently produced Nigeria’s first feature-length animated movie, ‘Lady Buckit and the Motley Mopsters’ also said he “feels like films such as ‘Lady Buckit and the Motley Mopsters’ tell a different story about Nollywood.
It talks about the possibilities where talent is involved. It also talks about the possibilities where adequate funding is involved. Nollywood can do anything. You just have to fund it right.”
Ihidero is a Nollywood veteran with over two decades of experience in the film industry.
He has been a theatre artiste, broadcaster, newspaper columnist, magazine editor and university lecturer.
He made a switch to film in 2007 when he joined Amaka Igwe Studios as a trainee director and since then, has directed over 100 hours of TV drama and has written or consulted on over 1000 episodes of TV dramatic content, including Fuji House of Commotion and Africa Magic’s HUSH.
He also produced MTV Shuga Naija Series 3 in 2015 and Series 4 in 2017. Through his Chris Ihidero’s StoryStory project, done in honour of his late teacher, Amaka Igwe, Chris has trained over 200 Nigerian storytellers for free.
A major shake‑up rocks viewers and subscribers of DSTV/GOTV as many channels are set to shut down and be removed on January 1, 2026.
The trigger for the upcoming shut‑down is a breakdown in negotiations between the owners of multiple global channels and the pay‑TV operator.
As of December 2025, the deal between Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) and DStv/GOtv has expired and the two parties have not reached a renewal agreement.
Without a new carriage/distribution agreement, the channels belonging to WBD risk being pulled off the DStv/GOtv line‑up.
This is the most significant content cutback the service has seen in years.
The affected channels are:
Discovery Channel
TLC
Cartoonito
Cartoon Network
CNN International
Food Network
The Travel Channel
TNT
Investigation Discovery
Real Time
HGTV
Discovery Family
Paramount Africa is officially shutting down at the end of December 2025, drawing the curtain on more than two decades of operations in South Africa and Nigeria.
The company, which once reached over 100 million viewers across 52 African territories, confirmed it will close its doors as part of a massive global restructuring at its parent company, Paramount Global.
This is the same Paramount Africa behind channels like BET, MTV, MTV Base, Comedy Central, Nickelodeon, and more.
Its digital footprint has also been significant, with millions of monthly page views, social media engagements, and content partnerships across Africa.
But despite that scale, rising costs and a global strategic reset have caught up with the business.
Paramount’s retrenchment has been building for months.
Earlier this year, plans to launch a standalone Paramount+ app in South Africa were quietly shelved.
Then in August, the company said its content would remain available only via DStv and Showmax.
And last month, MultiChoice confirmed that BET Africa and MTV Base will disappear from DStv and GOtv on January 1, 2026, as Paramount Africa winds down entirely.
The shutdown is tied to aggressive cost-cutting after Paramount’s merger with Skydance. The company is targeting a 15% reduction in global staff and $3 billion in savings.
International divisions, including Africa, have taken the hardest hit as the business pivots away from linear TV and doubles down on a more streamlined streaming-first model.
At the same time, the global media landscape is being shaken by Warner Bros. Discovery’s chaotic auction. Netflix, Paramount, and Comcast have all submitted fresh bids for WBD, with some offers reportedly focusing on the studios-and-streaming division, home to HBO, HBO Max, DC, and Warner Bros. Pictures.
Analysts say the crown jewel bundle could go for as much as $70 billion, a deal that would reshape Hollywood and accelerate the decline of traditional TV.
DStv subscribers may lose access to 12 major Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) channels, including CNN International, Discovery Channel, TLC, and Cartoon Network, from Jan. 1, 2026, if MultiChoice and WBD fail to conclude a new distribution agreement.
DStv
MultiChoice, now owned by Canal+, issued a notice to customers on Monday, warning that its current carriage deal with WBD will expire on Dec. 31, 2025, and negotiations to renew the contract remain inconclusive.
“While discussions between the parties continue, no agreement has been reached at this stage. If this remains unchanged, several Warner Bros. Discovery channels may no longer be available on DStv from Jan. 1, 2026,” the company said.
The channels at risk include Discovery Channel, CNN International, TLC, Discovery Family, Real Time, TNT Africa, Food Network, HGTV, Investigation Discovery, Cartoon Network, Cartoonito, and Travel Channel.
The development comes amid subscriber losses for MultiChoice, which has shed 2.8 million active linear subscribers over the last two financial years.
This includes 1.2 million customers lost in 2025 alone, representing an 8 per cent decline across South Africa and the rest of Africa.
In Nigeria, MultiChoice has lost 1.4 million subscribers in the past two years, largely due to repeated subscription price increases, according to Nairametrics.
The broadcaster is also set to lose additional content in the coming months. Paramount Africa will discontinue BET Africa and MTV Base from Jan. 1, 2026, while CBS Reality and CBS Justice will cease operations on Dec. 31, 2025.
Senate Considers Bill to Empower CBN to Regulate Fintech
It is Official, DStv Confirms Termination of 16 Major Channels
Paramount Africa Shuts Down after 20 Years
Afreximbank Taps Nigeria to Lead Africa’s Digital Trade Revolution
GenAI Adoption Among African workers Outpace Global Peers
Oluwaseun Dania Unearths How AI will Shape Africa’s Creative-AI Future @ World Bank Forum
Kaspersky Introduces Cyber Pathways to Support Career Development in Cybersecurity
Nigeria’s $618m Tech Incubator Debuts
NITDA DG Tasks Youths to Drive Africa’s Digital Transformation
Firm Urges Organizations to Check Protection of their Websites Amid Search Engine Optimisation Attack Schemes
E-Business2 days agoReport says Human Error Fuels Breaches as Only Half of Professionals Receive Cybersecurity Training
E-Financial2 days agoFBNQuest Merchant Bank Confirms New Ownership Structure, Sets Stage for Future Growth
E-Business2 days agoCyber Tsunami Hits Nigeria as Breaches Surge 1,047%, esentry Q3 Report Reveals
General News2 days agoNigeria’s GDP Rises to 3.98% in Q3 2025, Driven by Agriculture, ICT, and Finance
General News2 days agoIHS Nigeria Leads Gender Based Violence Awareness Walk, Reaffirms Zero Tolerance with Advocacy Seminar
E-Financial2 days agoMoniepoint MFB Launches Moniebook to Transform MSMEs Operations
E-Business1 day agoJumia’s Data Shows Nigerians Turning to Digital Retail to Navigate Inflation Pressures
Telecom2 days agoAfrica Data Centres Partners CSSi SA to Boost Data Sovereignty in South Africa