Characteristics of
African
media
markets
Guy Berger
Workshop by Forum Media and Development,
15.-16. September, 2006
Academy Eichholz Castle, Germany: “Money matters. How
Independent Media Manage to Survive
”,
From
whence comes
this talk?
- taught media management
- founded Sol Plaatje Institute
- managed South newspaper
Mapping which Markets
• Finance, facilities (newsprint, PCs, etc)
• Audiences
• Promotions and events
• Pipes/deliveries/frequencies/cable/masts
• Distribution outlets
• Advertising
• Skills (editorial, business)
• Services (eg. Market research), business
intelligence, auditing, etc.
The big
picture
Africa: the
practice
vs the Theory:
First world:
follow market
Third world:
build market
Western media economics …
→ Editorial ↓
↑
Audiences ↓
← Advertising ←
+… ADVERTS
at the top
African media
economics:
add
POLITICS
Editorial here is driven by:
government &
opposition
As for
Audiences:
Objects not
consumers;
“Subjects”,
not “citizens”
!
Adverts in
broadcasting,
incl “public” broadcast.
But print relies on cover
price
Crosscompany
Continent
Scale &
Languages
+ Crosscountry
Crossplatform
Challenge: Websites in
Africa are just add-ons:
brand-building or diaspora
service role.
Small – but strategically
vital & forerunner to
mobile web
Issues
For African
Media (4)
Development
Deepening
density
Africa: Info underload
“More” media = >prospects
for + impact.
Schechter: more you watch,
the less you know.
Berger: the more there is,
the more our chances to learn!
Deconstructing
density:
–Media Provision
•More media in the society
– growth, expansion, new titles,
– Media Consumption
•More use of the media
–Access, awareness, devices, costs
Puzzle:
- Does supply
side drive
demand, or
vice versa?
- Where
should we
concentrate
energies?
Complex linkage
• Consumers can increase time with media
or share
– So demand can increase, with static supply.
• And, increased production does not
necessarily mean more consumption!
– You can put inserts in a paper, no-one reads.
But whichever leads:
expanded supply is needed if media
density is really to show an increase
Question…
Is African media just
young and merely
needing help to
grow?
Skills
Finance
HOW?
Question again…
Is African media just young and
merely needing help to grow,
obstacles
oligopolies
oligarchs?
or
are there also
and
such as
Skills
Finance
HOW?
ENVIRONS
Some
Detail
Can’t generalise too much
• Kenya, South
Africa, Namibia, Nigeria –
relatively developed
Against
– Audience consumption data available
generalising
– Can withstand govt advertising boycotts
– Nigeria has privately-driven Nollywood
• Botswana, Lesotho:
hand2mouth
– Mokgosi “killed” by govt competition
– Basotho pluralism: a diff paper a day
–Waves: Rise, & decline (SA
alternative press)- OR
–Transition (Namibian, Post)
•Succession is anLifecycles
issue
–OR: politically-tied, not really
“independent” (Malawi)
Politically driven
•Media freedom: Zim –
don’t invest your savings in
independent media!
•Access to information
•Insult law
•Taxations
Ouch!
States – another side
• SA: MDDA –
finance and support
• SA: Skills development levy
• SA: local
content for broadcasting
investment
• SA: foreign
facilitated (%)
Yes!
Total
Multiplex
Strategy
McCoombs’ Constancy Factor
•Media in USA was
never > 5%
GNP
•Media spend per family also
5% max
Meaning that….
•New media must take from old.
•Re-slicing of ad & audience pie.
•People don’t increase total
media consumption,
instead they switch between
“Functional Equivalents”.
African specificity:
off a low base –
• We come
room to grow.
export potential
• Also have
(Nollywood).
• In the Info Age, industry has to
grow! (incl even the tabloids!)
Mixed market economies
• Unlike the USA, Africa is open to role of
extra-market resources
for growth – eg.
–volunteers in community radio;
– State/donor subsidy for public
broadcasters or grassroots media.
(But cf Kasoma theory on the
“
donor-dependent” press)
Conditions of success…
•Community outreach is a necessity
not a luxury – for Devt, Visibility, Relevance
•Show good returns on adspend.
Note: which ad markets? new ones? classifieds,
supplements?)
•Stop anti-competitive activities
by large companies
•Cease threat of Municipal newspapers.
- SPI
More “plus” factors…
•
Success means papers run by people
with marketing
or financial
management history or training.
• Family members feature strongly.
• Definite role of women leaders/owners.
• Owners are “strong”, high tenacity and
resourcefulness, many are charismatic.
• High degree of multi-tasking.
Innovation 1
Aids: doing
good and doing
well
(NIE too)
Innovation 2
Partnerships
with cellphone
companies on
SMS
SMS news tips, letters service
costs $45 a month, covered through
the revenue share.
One paper has accumulated many
thousands of phone numbers which
it can use for promotions.
Good for building
interactivity
Innovation 3
Phoenix radio,
Lusaka:
Traffic report;
Interview
technique
Innovation 4
Convergence:
IPP, Nation
Ideas
anew
SA: stimulating small media
• National ad procurement agency.
• System for circulation verification
•Printing procurement
• Discounted connectivity
• Networks need strengthening
•Technology plan.
(Hadland & Thorne)
Density as destiny – scaling up:
• Merger, acquisitions, ownership, alliances, jvs.
Collaborations: Marketing
Content-sharing
Research
Purchasing inputs
• Cross-language publishing – eg. Naspers
• Fusion – eg. Business Report
• Piggy-backing – eg. Sun
• Newsroom convergence – Cape Newspapers
• Audience data-mining & sale – Sunday Times
A
L
S
O
Microfinance needed
Systematic training
Mentoring
Open Source
Adding
it up
Situate:
Africa
(not
homogenous)
Focus on:
Politics
as a motor or as
a roadblock!
States: can be positive.
Density issue & our specificity,
Small successes
Looking ahead:
Newspaper, TV markets
shrinking in First World.
But huge potential for all media
in Africa…
“The lion
wakes
tonight”?
• Hadland, A and Thorne, K. 2004. The
People’s Voice. HSRC: Bellville.
• Milne, C et al. SPI: Grahamstown