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iROKOtv Unveils New Content Package for Internet TV Service

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iROKOtv.com, the world’s most popular Internet TV platform for African entertainment has unveiled a brand new international content package for its subscribers on the continent, to include TV series and movies from around the world.

New content categories introduced on the platform include Hollywood, Bollywood, Telenovelas and Korean programming, to complement the platform’s extensive Nollywood catalogue of over 10,000 hours.

For as little as $2.50 a month, subscribers throughout English Speaking Africa (ESA) can now access an unrivalled and affordable international online content package featuring Hollywood royalty, alongside the likes of Nollywood favourites Mercy Johnson, Majid Michel and Mama G. 

Launched in December 2011, iROKOtv.com is currently the 11th largest Pay TV operator in Africa, with ambitious plans to grow to a top 5 position.

Having secured additional funding early on in 2014, bringing the total raised from Tiger Global, Kinnevik and Rise Capital to $25M, the VC-backed pioneer of African Internet TV is rolling out its international content strategy across the continent, in a push to make OTT delivery a mainstream means of affordable and legal content consumption across Africa.

Jason Njoku, iROKOtv.com co-founder and CEO said, “We have been passionate about bringing affordable content to viewers across Africa. This is just another milestone towards that. Internet TV will enable hundreds of millions of fans across the continent to finally be able to access awesome content.

“We see the web and mobile platform almost as equal to DTH and DTT platforms in the next few years and our focus is on achieving this in Africa, supplying the 800-million strong population of Sub Saharan Africa (SSA) with the best content on the planet, be it from Nollywood, Hollywood or Bollywood.”

The subscription service allows for unlimited, commercial-free viewing and in an effort to conquer the ongoing challenge of expensive data charges across Africa, all new content will also be subjected to advance encoding, allowing files to be  compressed and significantly reduce costs associated with video streaming, whilst keeping picture quality as high as possible.

Pay TV in Africa is the fastest growing form of media on the continent and with the emergence of DTH and the rapid rise of DTT over the last 2 years, it is predicted that Internet TV will become the third distribution platform.

The mobile revolution is set to propel this growth of internet-enabled devices, which will continue to grow as data becomes more affordable. The figure for such hardware devices is set to reach the hundreds of millions by 2017. Pay TV subscriptions across Africa currently stand at 10 million, with international bundles costing as much as $40 per month, making quality content unaffordable for the majority of the continent and therefore leaving the market open to extensive piracy.

Today’s announcement from iROKOtv.com sees the company push for legally acquired quality content, at an affordable price for more millions more Africans.

Njoku added, “We polled thousands of iROKOtv.com users in SSA and 80% indicated they didn’t have Pay TV access. We feel our audience complements existing players and we are excited to be contributing to the Pay TV universe across Africa. However, our audience combats challenges not faced by their Western counterparts, such as a lack of constant electricity supplies to power their mobile phones, laptops and tablets, so we have to design our products within these parameters. We have spent the last three years understanding how to address these challenges, as well as focussing on how to deliver awesome, affordable and legal content in extreme bandwidth-light environments.” 

Whilst the company plans to expand its international library, there will also be a renewed focus on local films, TV series and documentaries with at least 50% of the iROKOtv.com catalogue being homegrown African content.

iROKOtv.com currently holds the world’s largest online catalogue of Nollywood movies, totalling 5,000+ movies equating to 10,000+ hours of content. At present, the platform attracts viewers per month from 178 countries around the world and has offices in Lagos, New York and Johannesburg.  

Since its launch in 2010, iROKOtv.com has closed on $25Mn of international VC investment from Tiger Global, Kinnevik and RISE Capital over five rounds and is valued at over $50Mn.


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NASENI, Nasarawa State, Firm to Establish Tractor Manufacturing Plant in North-Central Geo-political Zone

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National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI) is set to collaborate with Nasarawa state government and Bobtrack Tractors, a division of Saint Bob Motors Limited to start the manufacturing and assembling of tractors in the north-central geo-political zone.

Left to Right: The Chief Executive Officer, Bob Track Ltd, Mr. Ibifiri A.C Bob Manuel; the Executive Vice Chairman/CEO, National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI), Mr. Khalil Suleiman Halilu; the Executive Governor of Nasarawa State, Engr. Abdullahi A. Sule, and Mr. Jerry of Bob Track Ltd, during a courtesy visit at NASENI Headquarters on Monday, April 22nd, 2024.

The facilities and infrastructure available at one of NASENI’s Institutes, Agricultural Machinery and Equipment Development Institute (AMEDI), Lafia, Nasarawa state will be used for assembling and manufacturing of the tractors.

According to the Executive Vice Chairman/Chief Executive Officer, NASENI, Mr. Khalil Suleiman Halilu, the project which is aimed at creating wealth and jobs for Nigerian youths is in line with President Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda of ensuring food security and promotion of mechanized farming and agro-business in the country. Halilu disclosed this when the Executive Governor of Nasarawa State, Engr. Abdulahi A. Sule led a delegation comprising of Bob Track Tractors to pay a visit to the Agency’s headquarters in Abuja on Monday, April 22nd, 2024.

Mr. Halilu who assured Governor Sule and the delegation of NASENI’s readiness to do business with them, said, “the Agency is willing to partner with you and sign the memorandum of understanding (MoU) so that in the next couple of weeks we will move into action.”

He disclosed that Mr. President had recognized NASENI as a national brand and its National Tractor Recovery Programme wherein 55,000 tractors would be refurbished for mechanized farming nationwide.

In his remarks, Governor Sule said, he aligned with NASENI’s vision of collaborating and promoting made-in-Nigeria goods and also believed that government’s role is to provide a level playing field necessary for businesses to thrive.

The objective of his visit, he said, was to introduce the Bob Track Tractors which deals in assembling and manufacturing of tractor and farm implements with offices in Port Harcourt to NASENI so that it could utilize the existing facilities at AMEDI, Lafia for assembling of tractors instead of acquiring a new land for the business.

The CEO of Bob Track Tractors, Mr. Ibifiri A.C. Bob Manuel said, “We are ready to take up the facility that you have in Nasarawa State, create employment and wealth for the youths in the area and also use it as a hub to drive mechanized agricultural vision of the present administration. We are willing to invest in Nasarawa state with help of His Excellency, his team and NASENI.”


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ARISE News Channel Goes Live in SA, 9 Other Southern African Countries

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ARISE News Channel, Africa’s premier broadcaster, has announced its expansion into South Africa and nine other Southern African countries.

ARISE News Channel Goes Live in SA, 9 Other Southern African Countries

The channel is now available on Multichoice/DSTV Channel 416 in South Africa, Angola, Botswana, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Swaziland, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.

With this expansion, ARISE News Channel is now live in 54 African countries, including Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda, Uganda, Cameroon, Sudan, Ghana, Senegal, and Cote d’Ivoire, among others.

Celebrating its 11th anniversary on January 31, ARISE News Channel continues to showcase Africa’s diversity in business, politics, technology, commerce, science, sports, show business, and fashion, while projecting the best of Africa and its cultures globally.

Nduka Obaigbena, chairman and editor-in-chief of ARISE News Channel,, expressed determination to launch the channel in all countries worldwide, stating, “The move to Southern Africa reaffirms ARISE News Channel’s position as the leading broadcaster in Africa with independence and clear thinking. We are determined to celebrate the best of Africa and tell the African story in the global marketplace.”

He added, “We shall continually showcase the emerging African century where Nigeria and other African countries will be some of the leading economies around the world. This is a marathon and not a dash: we will do for Nigeria and Africa what the CNN, the BBCs, and Aljazeeras have done for their nations and regions. In the emerging African AI- driven new information highway, no one will shape your narrative better than you.”


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Simi to Feature on Glo Sponsored African Voices

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This week, the incredible talents of Nigerian singer, songwriter, and actress Simisola Bolatito Kosoko, better known by her stage name, Simi, will be highlighted on African Voices Changemakers, an interview program sponsored by Globacom on Cable News Network (CNN).

Simi began her career initially as a gospel singer. Her debut studio album, “Ogaju”, was released in 2008. After she got a record deal with X3M Music in 2014, she released the album “Tiff,” which was nominated for a 2015 Headies Best Alternative Song award.

Her debut studio album, “Omo Charlie Champagne”, Vol. 1, was released to mark her 31st birthday on April 19, 2019, and her second album, “Simisola”, was also released the same year. She became the CEO of her own label, Studio Brat, which she launched in June 2019.

Simi was one of the judges of the Season 7 of the Nigerian idol TV show in 2022.

Mother of a girl named Dejare, Simi married popular musician, Adekunle Gold in 2019 having graduated from Covenant University in Ota, Ogun State. Some of her works include “Joromi”, “Know You”, “Jericho”, and “Duduke”.

On Saturday at 8.30 a.m., the 30-minute magazine show will air on the global channel. Reruns can be seen on Saturday at noon, Sunday at 4.30 a.m., and Sunday at 7:00 p.m. Another rerun will air at 4 a.m. on Monday of the following week, 8.30 a.m. and 12 p.m. on Saturday, and 7 p.m. and 9.30 p.m. on Sunday.


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