That means that pay TV operators in Africa will increasingly have to meet the customer and subscriber not just where they're at - but on the device they're at.
''There is a growing demand for those real value-added services and the expectation will become that consumers as we know, want what content they want on a specific device that suit them, through whatever distribution mechanism to satisfy that need through connected services.'' So says Chris Oberholzer, the head of strategy and development at the South African satellite broadcaster MultiChoice. He was speaking today at the AfricaCast 2011 TV summit that kicked off today in Cape Town as part of the 14th AfricaCom conference.
''We need to serve them [subscribers] with the right stuff on the specific platforms that they want to consume it,'' he said. ''The use of these hybrid or blended solutions is the way to offer these comprehensive services. This is not going to be an 'either or' world. We see it very much as a complimentary environment.''
''So what is our strategy for an increasingly convergent environment? We believe that we need to be available on multiple platforms to serve the customer's needs wherever they are. DStv Mobile has been very successful in launching the DVB-H product and the mobile product - not only for handsets but also the DStv Drifta. We need to service the customer's needs with a seamless operation so that the customer and subscriber don't have to search [elsewhere] for compelling content,'' said Chris Oberholzer.
