Video Halls

Business Daily reports on the appearance of video halls that cater largely to the Nollywood Film audience and asks the question, can they be monetized and formalized?

“Every African country has the equivalent of a pirate cinema audience that runs into the thousands....The challenge for film-makers, distributors and exhibitors is how to turn this grey market into one that functions at a price level that allows it to go legitimate,” wrote Russell Southwood.

In Uganda for example:

With only two mainstream cinemas in the whole country, video dens have sprung up to take care of the country’s growing appetite for African films— especially Nigerian...Referred to as Bibanda in Uganda, the video shacks easily attract over 120,000 viewers each day at a cost of 7 US cents (about five Kenya shillings) per ticket. The conventional theatres ask for $7 per ticket.So far, it is estimated that there are over 2,000 video halls in Uganda. In the video dens (simple makeshift cinemas that are poorly lit and mostly in the overpopulated estates), you will find VJs who narrate the films in local languages.

The Opportunity:

According to Martin Mhando, a filmmaker, there has been a huge growth in the video den network over the last five years in a bid to keep up with demand for local content.
With a combined population of 120 million of the East African community that encompasses Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda, East African filmmakers and distributors interested in the low-end market could easily make a kill.