NETFLIX, America’s subscription streaming service and production company, has said it has invested 9 Billion Naira in Nigeria’s film industry between 2016 and 2022.
This was made known during the second Nigerian digital content regulation conference which held in Lagos on Friday, November 11, 2022.
The event was attended by stakeholders in the local and international streaming services, independent producers, Free-To-Air, Pay TV Operators, Telcos, content creators and other operators in the film industry, the vanguard reported.
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Speaking at the event, Ms Shola Sanni, Director of Public Policy for sub-Saharan Africa, Netflix was reported to have said the investment were targeted towards converting local film tittles, capacity building and infrastructure development in the industry. She said Netflix had invested in over 200 local licensed titles, coproduced and commissioned original film content, noting that 125 films and TV series are available on Netflix as at November 2022. Ms Sanni made the following remarks:
“We love Nigeria and believe in it and that is why we are investing in the Nigerian film industry to entertain Nigerians and the world with the best in-class stories from the country.
” we are poised to tell stories that are not only interesting in Nigeria but in other 189 countries where Netflix is present” she said.
Also gracing the event, Alh. Adedayo Thomas, the Executive Director of the National Film And Video Censors Board (NFVCB) noted that the conference which started in 2021, was geared toward bringing balance and equity to the ecosystem especially regarding the disruption of the digital era. According to him:
“The overall goal of this conference is to create a platform for robust dialogue between the government, through the regulator and the Video-on-Demand (VOD) platforms.
“This is led by the Over-The-Top Streamers, as the government strives to oversee, monitor, moderate and balance the digital phenomenon for all players.
“As the shift from traditional to digital content consumption and the operations of local and international Over-The-Top (OTT) streaming services continue to impact on the growth of the local film industry in Nigeria.
“It has become imperative to convene the second edition of this conference,” he said.
Mr Thomas commends NETFLIX and other key stakeholders and sponsors for extending a hand of partnership in the industry.