Entertaining Africa

The worldwide gaming industry is worth more than the movie and music industry combined and Africa has a brand new player.

Letii Arts is a Ghanaian company where the team is building more than an entertainment business. They are creating a whole new industry in Africa. Using traditional stories as their base, the games are interactive and available online and via mobile phones. Letii Arts has started a brand new genre of gaming.

Buni Media is based in Kenya but their political satire is resonating with thousands of young Africans across the continent. They are now able to receive popular satirical comedy via their mobile phones and on their computers. Using puppets, the Buni Media team create topical comedic shows that deal with some of Africa’s most pressing issues and poke fun at everyone from South Africa’s President Jacob Zuma to armed group Boko Haram. Their mobile platform, Buni.tv, has allowed a freedom of political satire rarely seen in Africa. Buni media is expanding its offering to include African language films for diaspora communities.

For many African performers, it is extremely difficult to promote original music without the aid of a record label. Big record labels take the major share of income and often musicians find themselves working hard for very little financial reward. SPICE is a V.A.S (value added service provided) who has just started a music streaming service specifically for African artists. It is called “Mziiki” and features free African music online. Mziiki‘s offer includes choral music and traditional songs that would normally not be available to listeners. Artists like Diamond Platinumz from Tanzania have signed up to the new service which promises to helps artists grow their fan base while limiting the opportunity for piracy.

Innovate Africa can be seen on Al Jazeera English at the following times GMT: Tuesday: 2230; Wednesday: 0930; Thursday: 0330; Friday: 1630; Saturday: 0530.