Content is truly king and since Jason Njoku stumbled upon a beneficial way of providing and distributing Nollywood content, he has been smiling to the bank.
He has now taken it a step further by now spreading the wealth to Africa’s digital content creators, content producers, musical stars and vibrant social media personalities. He has created IrokoX. IrokoX is Africa’s only full-service, cross-media Multi-Platform Network focused on creating an ecosystem to create, monetize and distribute the best short-form content that Africa has to offer.
No, the offer is not like a typical telco where the content creator bring content and the telco takes between 60% – 80%. According to IrokoX General Manager Oluchi Enuha, “It will operate on an 80/20 split revenue share model for the majority of users—the artists get 80 percent.” The content creator also has IrokoX providing production assistance, studio resources, and the opportunity to show their work on global partner networks such as Youtube, iTunes, and Google Play. Awesome, right!!
“We are going after something akin to a Maker Studios, whereby Africa’s professional and semi-professional creators can produce quality digital content, market it, share it with larger audiences, and get paid,” he said, referring to the U.S. based multi-channel network purchased by Disney for $500 million in 2014.
This business is not new to iROKO as they have always ensured that the content partners are properly conpensated for their content. Jason mentioned in a tweet that IrokoX is just formalising the operations. He mentioned that iROKO paid out $500k+ (N200m+) to content partners last year on an 80/20 split.
we paid out $500k+ (N200m+) to content partners last year on an 80/20 split. irokox just formalizes this. https://t.co/Ekg9GBFxZ1
— JasonNjoku (@JasonNjoku) September 9, 2016
Backed by a world class in-house video editing and graphic design team and several years of distribution expertise, the IrokoX team will specifically provide a suite of services, including, but not limited to,
- content production & promotion,
- programming and branded sponsorship campaigns to connect brands with powerful influencers across all entertainment industries,
- existing media channel management and
- global content distribution.
IrokoX will work out of its iROKO’s Lagos, New York and London offices, when it selects a round of artists from its first open call. “We’ll launch a link this month where anyone can apply. Musicians, fashion designers, journalists, anyone can submit a demo and follow the application process,” said Enuha.
IrokoX will then pair selected artists to production resources, sponsorship, and distribution channels. Iroko is already Youtube’s largest content partner in Sub-Saharan Africa, according to a company release.
On how IrokoX will make money, Oluchi said “We’ll draw on several streams: ad revenue, distribution platform sales with download sites such as iTunes and Spotify, content syndication with third party mobile and social media platforms, and brand marketing deals.”
