Filamu Kenya Issue 2 | Page 6

Royal Viusasa Media ink Services, media convergence deal B y J ames N done Viusasa offers video, music and live TV channels, where viewers can subscribe and pay depending on the packages available. “The first thing we do is look for a market for your content. We then distribute the videos to ensure everyone who is supposed to get them does receive them. We also educate people that the videos are available. That is the general work of the company,” he says in a short video produced by Citizen TV, which was posted on YouTube last year ahead of Viusasa’s launch. According to Business Today, Viusasa is owned by former Steadman Group’s (now Ipsos-Synovate) managing director George Tafaria Waititu. The content is then put on a mobile app, which was launched last year, and is, thereafter, availed at a small subscription fee of Ksh20 daily. Mr Waititu says the aim of Viusasa is to exploit the opportunity provided by the transition to digital media by offering a medium that brings together print, TV and radio, a concept called media convergence in the journalism parlance. He said the decision to launch the new medium was informed by research conducted over several years to address emerging market needs and problems that producers of short videos face. There was a rumour making rounds that Viusasa is owned by senior RMS employees, a notion that did not gel well with the organisation’s management on a conflict of interest basis. Royal Media Services (RMS) has struck a deal with subscription video and on-demand media platform Viusasa that will see viewers access media content through the Viusasa mobile app. RMS has been running an aggressive media campaign to draw people to the new short video on demand platform, which also streams its live broadcasts at a fee. Citizen TV has since terminated live streaming of its TV online, except on matters of huge public interest. Viusasa has also lined up a series of high-profile celebrities to join the fast-growing platform. Among those who have already signed up with Viusasa is comedian Daniel Ndambuki of the Churchill Live fame and veteran journalist Hillary Ng’eno, who has produced various documentaries on Kenya’s history. The company has also partnered with the Kenya Film Classification Board to promote short format films in local languages under the Sinema Mashinani programme and encourage compliance with film and broadcast content distribution regulations. Viusasa (slang for watch now), produces its short comedy shows at the Royal Media studios in Kiswahili, English and various local languages. Viusasa also offers an archive of various soap operas and local programmes shown on Citizen TV. F i l a m u K e n y a PA G E 6 n o w p l a y i n g