Canal Plus has announced the acquisition of the production, content distribution and channel assets of Iroko Partners, saying that the move will reinforce its presence in the Nigerian cinema industry, known colloquially as Nollywood.
The deal covers Rok Studios, the production company headed by actress and producer Mary Njoku, with over 500 hours of new films and series per year, plus a catalogue of over 2,000 hours. It also includes the distribution of proprietary and third-party titles globally, as well as the editing and distribution of four channels marketed under the Rok brand, currently aired across Anglophone Africa and by Sky in the UK.
Canal Plus said that it plans to expand the Rok brand inside and outside the African continent. The broadcaster’s chief content officer, Fabrice Faux, told TechCrunch that the group plans to give Njoku “maximum autonomy and creative freedom”, adding that she will be encouraged to bring her Nollywood’s formula to French speaking Africa. Canal Plus and Rok could also be open to producing content for other VoD and production outlets.
Canal Plus’ deal follows a number of collaborations with Iroko in recent years, including the acquisition of a 20 percent stake in IrokoTV. As part of this latest transaction, Iroko Ltd will take full control of SVoD joint venture Iroko+. Canal Plus will continue to collaborate with Iroko Ltd going forward, with a non-exclusive content distribution of Rok content through Iroko's SVoD platform.
