New media, new ideas, new possibilities at BOBTV 2011

By Nkasiobi Oluikpe
Digital Broadcasting is upon us and with a vengeance. High Definition, Broadband, Digital terrestrial Broadcasting, IPTV and Mobile. BOBTV 2011 will mark the eighth edition of the African Film and Television Programmes Expo and Market. The theme Chosen for 2011 is ‘New Media’. This reflects the realities of the convergence enabled by digital delivery channel that have redefined the media content industry.
Each year, BOBTV welcomes visitors and delegates from all over the world, to a five-day fiesta, of premieres, workshops, conferences, markets and shows. We are happy with the attendance figures at the 7th market. BOBTV 2010 attracted a total of 3,704 delegates, a seven per cent increase in comparison to 2009. This figure was surpassed only once before in the history of the market, when 4,786 participants attended in 2007. Participating companies were at a record of 58, from 13 different countries - an 11 per cent increase when compared to 45 companies from the previous year. Also, the good news for producers was that there were 350 acquisition heads in comparison to 2009 and the number of buyers present in Abuja posted a rise of seven per cent.
These figures reflect the steady growth and evolution of the audiovisual industry. By providing a comprehensive line-up of specialist conferences…. we aimed to not only create a dynamic business environment for our clients but also to highlight the future opportunities for audiovisual content, in relation to major issues such as new technologies, developing sectors and emerging formats.” Producers, broadcasters, distributors and advertisers continue to face challenges in these new areas – both in terms of providing content and selling into these markets. The competition from the new markets is providing a boost for producers. Over the course of four days, conference halls were filled to capacity, and subjects such as High Definition, New Formats, Mobile TV Content and Digital Technologies provided the key areas of discussion for our several panels.
The Federal Government, in Abuja said a total of 4.42Tbits (terabit per second) of broadband capacity would come on stream this year. The former Minister of Information and Communications, Prof. Dora Akunyili, announced this at the inauguration of the new board members of the Nigerian Communications Commission.
This vast expansion in bandwidth has begun with the arrival of ‘Glo One, Main One’ and other transatlantic fibre optic pipes.
Glo One has a current capacity of 640 Gigabit per second and an ultimate capacity of 2.5 Terabit per second.
The 9,800km-long cable from UK through Mauritania, Morocco and 16 West African countries with dedicated extension to New York, was anchored at its Landing Station at Alpha Beach, Lekki, Lagos.
The 7,000 km (4,350 mile) fibre optic Main One Cable runs from Portugal to Nigeria and Ghana, and also branches out to Morocco, the Canary Islands, Senegal and Ivory Coast.
The Main One Cable Company says it delivers more than 10 times the broadband capacity of the South Atlantic Terminal (SAT-3), Nigeria’s sole existing undersea cable, and 20 times the entire satellite capacity of sub-Saharan Africa. There are around 10 undersea cables either under construction or in the planning stages around the whole of Africa.
Glo One has 99.9 per cent up time reliability, world-class long distance voice, video and data communication services for African customers, adding that the cable will support the large bandwidth requirements of direct consumers and other service providers.
The implication for content providers and users are enormous. With the president $200 million sectorial support, I opine that the time for engagement is now. BOBTV shall offer new ideas and new possibilities to enable the media industries invest wisely.