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Digital Entertainment

Kwesé Acquires Stake in iflix Africa

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Kwesé, the pan-African TV services unit of Econet Media, has acquired a "significant stake" in emerging markets video content specialist iflix Africa to better service the entertainment needs of African mobile users.

The size of the stake or the sum paid have not been revealed.

Kwesé says the deal, which cements the partnership between the two companies, will underpin the delivery of "seamless mobile experiences to millions of viewers in Africa." Kwesé, which offers its services in 13 sub-Saharan countries, will use its broadcast operations and network reach to deliver local African and international TV and content and movies from iflix, which has operations in Nigeria, Kenya, Ghana and South Africa.

Kwesé notes that iflix will drive its "go-to-market mobile delivery" in its active markets. Iflix has built a library of Hollywood, Asian and Middle Eastern regional and local TV shows and movies, including first-run exclusives. Subscribers to iflix can access the service on up to five devices, including phones, laptops, tablets and TV sets.

"We are thrilled to deepen our operating partnership with iflix to lead the transformation of media in Africa," stated Strive Masiyiwa, Econet Group Founder and Executive Chairman. "Our companies share a mutual passion for innovation, along with a deep understanding of the culture and evolution of digital businesses. Mobility in content consumption has grown exponentially in Africa and by partnering with iflix Africa we are ensuring that we are not only taking part in the evolution, but are leading the movement."

Mark Britt, iflix Group co-founder and CEO, added: "The strengthening of our relationship with the Econet Group is a huge milestone for iflix. Following the initial phase of building our business in Africa, we have seen tremendous growth across our operating markets, far exceeding our expectations. Econet's deep experience and success in media and telecoms, will be a huge advantage and enable us to continue to grow rapidly."

In addition to the 13 countries where it offers its pay-as-you-watch Pay-TV service, Kwesé has built a pan-African free-to-air broadcast network that offers Kwesé Free Sport in more than 25 countries. (See Kwesé Takes New Approach to African TV for more on the company's model.)

— The staff, Connecting Africa

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