Regardless of experiences from three publications suggesting Netflix is exiting the Nigerian market, the worldwide streaming big has firmly denied these claims, insisting it can proceed to put money into Nigerian content material.
The hypothesis was fueled by feedback from Nigerian filmmaker Kunle Afolayan, who spoke on the 2024 Zuma Worldwide Movie Pageant. Afolayan claimed Netflix canceled a number of movies it had beforehand commissioned from unnamed filmmakers.
“Three years in the past, after we signed the three-film take care of Netflix, it was actually thrilling,” Afolayan stated. The filmmaker went on to share that regardless of the stellar efficiency of these motion pictures globally, Netflix appeared unimpressed by their returns in Nigeria.
“Thank God we had shot seasons two and three [of Anikulapo] as a result of all the opposite those that have been commissioned with us on the similar time have been canceled.”
Nonetheless, Afolayan didn’t explicitly state that Netflix was exiting the Nigerian market, though his remarks will rightly drive hypothesis that the streaming platform is retreating from the nation. This hypothesis is just not completely unfounded—Amazon Prime, one other main streaming service, exited Nigeria in January 2024 one 12 months after an enormous advertising marketing campaign and a slate of unique Nigerian productions..
In an announcement to TechCabal on Wednesday, a Netflix spokesperson reaffirmed the corporate’s dedication to Nigeria, saying, “We aren’t exiting Nigeria. We’ll proceed to put money into Nigerian tales to thrill our viewers.”
The spokesperson didn’t instantly tackle Afolayan’s claims about canceled initiatives. Nonetheless, Wednesday’s dialog and social media reactions spotlight rising uncertainty round Netflix’s long-term technique in Nigeria, the place rising inflation and forex devaluation have pressured client spending energy.
Netflix has struggled to seize a big share of Nigeria’s aggressive streaming market, which is dominated by the extra reasonably priced Showmax, a service operated by Multichoice. Netflix—at the moment priced at ₦7,000 ($4) per thirty days—stays a luxurious for a lot of Nigerians, particularly as inflation and naira devaluation erode buying energy.
With native gamers persevering with to outperform in pricing, Netflix’s means to keep up its place within the area might change into more and more difficult.
Netflix’s relationship with Nigeria dates again to 2016 when it started licensing high-profile native movies. Since 2016, it has poured over $23 million into Nigeria’s movie trade, backing over 250 regionally licensed titles, co-productions, and unique commissions. Lionheart, The Wedding ceremony Celebration 2, and King of Boys are a few of its most recognisable titles. In 2020, the streaming service signed multi-title offers with distinguished Nigerian producers like Mo Abudu’s EbonyLife Productions. In 2021, it expanded its partnership with Kunle Afolayan, signing a deal for 3 movies, together with an adaptation of Sefi Atta’s Swallow.
*Extra reporting by Religion Omoniyi.