To commence own programmes in Nigerian languages
From Ikenna Emewu in Beijing
StarTimes, the Chinese international digital TV content and services providers has widened its scope and prominence with the right to broadcast the 2018 Russia World Cup in Africa.
The sole broadcast right of all the matches of the World Cup live in all sub Sahara African countries with the exception of South Africa was announced Tuesday.
StarTimes out-bidded Multichoice of South Africa, owners of DSTV and became the sole rights holders for the world’s number one football event.
At the 7th annual international conference of the company going on in Beijing and attended by 46 African countries and 30 information ministers, the company announced that because Nigeria is its largest market in Africa with about 5m subscribers, it has started plans to create content in Igbo, Yoruba and Hausa languages and will soon set up translation studios in Nigeria to produce the programmes as a way of creating employment, deepening the TV sector, encouraging professionalism and boosting the migration of Nigeria to digital TV.
Further in the StarTimes expansion and sports rights, it also won the broadcast rights of 2017 FIFA U-20 World Cup, FIFA U-17 World Cup, FIFA Beach World Cup, FIFA Confederation Cup all in 2017.
It also secured the right to broadcast the 2018 FIFA Women’s World Cup and FIFA U-17 Women Word Cup all in 2018.