Tag Archives: African Union of Broadcasting

AUB, APO link to spread African content

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The African Union of Broadcasting (AUB) and pan-African communications consultancy APO Group have collaborated to provide free Africa-related content to major TV channels and radio stations around the world.

Gregoire Ndjaka

With this agreement, AUB members across Africa and sister associations all over the world – including the European Broadcasting Union, the Arab States Broadcasting Union and the Asia-Pacific Broadcasting Union – will have free access to all video and audio content produced or distributed by APO Group.

Content ranging from politics to business news and sports – including rugby, the Olympics and several elite African sporting events – will be available on the AUB platform. By delivering content directly to major international broadcasters, APO Group said it was continuing its commitment to changing the narrative about Africa by telling positive stories that can reach new audiences and challenge global perceptions of the continent.

Gregoire Ndjaka, CEO of AUB, said: “APO Group produces and distributes some of the best video and audio content in Africa. Our members and affiliate partners will now be able to access prime video and audio highlighting the biggest economic and sporting stories on the continent. This type of content is extremely valuable, and the seamless way it is delivered will make it easy for broadcasters all over the world to incorporate it in their news output.”

Nicolas Pompigne-Mognard, founder and chairman of APO Group, added: “The sheer scale of the AUB’s reach into the African broadcast community is incredible. No other organisation is able to pull together all the major broadcasters on the African continent and many others from further afield. This agreement represents an unprecedented opportunity to deliver the best of African economic news and sport to new audiences, and show the rest of the world what Africa has to offer.”

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AUB, Canal+ work against ACON piracy

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Officials from the African Union of Broadcasting (AUB) and French broadcasting giant Canal+ Group discussed issues relating to TV signal piracy during a recent meeting held ahead of the upcoming Africa Cup of Nations (ACON) football tournament.

Grégoire Ndjaka

With the 2021 tournament set to take place in January and February next year after being postponed due to Covid, the meeting was aimed at ensuring technical and legal measures are put in place to secure the signal of African channels broadcasting the tournament.

According to the AUB, piracy was a significant problem during the last ACON, which was held in Egypt in 2019. African broadcasters spend significant money to acquire the rights to show the games, while also relying on ad revenue earned during their coverage of the tournament.

AUB CEO Grégoire Ndjaka said: “Our permanent concern is the protection of TV signal. The fight ought to be carried at all levels. Are you allowed to screen the match? If yes, there is no problem. Secure your signal. But if you don’t have a broadcast contract, should you be allowed to operate illegally while others are paying? That’s the problem.”

From a technical point of view, Alexandre Gruner, director of channel relations and partnerships at Canal+, said; “If we have compelling evidence and take note of any illegal activity on Canal+ bouquet concerning AFCON or the FWC [next year’s Fifa World Cup], rest assured, we will suspend your signal.”

Sebastien Punturello, MD of Canal+ Senegal, added: “I spend at least 20-30% of my time fighting signal piracy. For several years, we have actively led the battle thanks to the support of local authorities, our relations, various ministries and the National Audiovisual Regulatory Council – CNRA Senegal.

“Almost everywhere on the continent, television signal piracy is developing using handcrafted techniques, helped by ICTs and other rival groups whose audience rates sometimes compete with those of Canal+, whereas they haven’t acquired the right to broadcast in certain territories in sub-Saharan Africa.”

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AUB, Canal+ fight against TV signal piracy

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Officials from the African Union of Broadcasting (AUB) and French broadcasting giant Canal+ met in Dakar this month ahead of the upcoming Africa Cup of Nations to discuss television signal piracy and how it threatens intellectual property rights.

Grégoire Ndjaka

The meeting was aimed at ensuring technical and legal measures were put in place to secure the signals of African channels, whose governments spend huge sums of money to acquire the rights to sporting competitions.

Both parties also spoke out on the issue of broadcasting rights, since TV channels depend on the advertising market during major competitions.

The AUB said that during the African Nations Championship, held in Cameroon in January and February, several of the 32 games delivered were screened illegally.

Grégoire Ndjaka, CEO of the AUB, said: “Our permanent concern is the protection of TV signal. The fight ought to be carried at all levels. Are you allowed to screen the match? If yes, there is no problem. Secure your signal. But if you don’t have a broadcast contract, should you be allowed to operate illegally while others are paying? That’s the problem.”

From a technical point of view, Alexandre Gruner, director of channel relations and partnerships at Canal+, said: “If we have compelling evidence and take note of any illegal activity on the Canal+ bouquet concerning the Africa Cup of Nations or the FWC, be rest assured, we will suspend your signal.”

Sebastien Punturello, managing director of Canal+ Senegal, added: “I spend at least 20-30% of my time fighting signal piracy. For several years, we have actively led the battle thanks to the support of local authorities, our relations, various ministries –culture, communication and justice – as well as [Senegal’s] National Audiovisual Regulatory Council.

“Almost everywhere on the continent, television signal piracy is developing using handcraft techniques, helped by [technology companies] and other rival groups whose audience rates sometimes compete with those of Canal+ whereas they haven’t acquired the right to broadcast in certain territories in sub-Saharan Africa”.

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AUB scores rights to World Cup qualifiers

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The African Union of Broadcasting (AUB) has secured media rights to 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifying games in 17 sub-Saharan countries.

A confirmation letter signed by FIFA’s director of media sales, service and content, Jean-Christophe Petit, said: “FIFA confirms that, subject to the terms of a media rights agreement between FIFA and African Union of Broadcasting, FIFA has granted to the AUB certain media rights right to broadcast and/or sub-license full, live and delayed audiovisual coverage of the matches of the respective national football teams of the territories of Benin, Cameroon, Congo Brazzaville, Cote d’Ivoire, DR Congo, Gabon, Madagascar, Senegal, Mali, Burkina Faso, Angola, Botswana, Mozambique, Namibia, Zambia and Guinea during the second round and play-offs of the Competition.”

FIFA had previously launched an invitation to tender for the commercialisation of the terrestrial free-to-air rights in the sub-Saharan Africa region.

The 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification process is a series of tournaments organised by the six FIFA confederations to decide 31 of the 32 teams that will play the FIFA World Cup, with Qatar qualifying automatically as host. The qualifying process opened in 2019 and five African nations will represent the continent in the World Cup.

The World Cup will take place from November 21 to December 18, 2022, in Qatar.

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