Paywizard has been selected by Inview, the broadcast and OTT software and services specialist, and the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) of Nigeria, to support the national digital TV switchover project.
Working with Inview, Paywizard’s AgileXtraTM platform will manage all customer data, subscriptions and billing, including voucher code/scratch card transactions. Paywizard’s platform will be integrated with Inview’s set-top boxes and Nagra’s conditional access system to allow subscribers to sign up to and access the content of their choice.
“While the pay-TV market across Africa is growing rapidly and demand is high, the switchover process is challenging,” said Emeka Mba, director general of NBC Nigeria. “We were looking to work with proven partners, such as Paywizard and Inview, who have lots of experience and industry knowledge to guide us as we move towards going digital.”
With NBC introducing a digital access fee, a key challenge was to consider how customers could subscribe to the service in a market where traditional payment mechanisms are not widely adopted.
“Vouchers were the obvious route of pre-payment for NBC Nigeria subscribers, allowing them to sign up, pay, and enjoy their new digital TV service seamlessly,” said Nick Markham, chairman, Inview. “We’ve worked with Paywizard on a number of opportunities across the world, predominantly in the DTT and digital switchover market and with the complexities of a market such as Nigeria; they were the obvious choice of partner to work with us”.
“For over five years, Paywizard were instrumental to the successful rollout of digital TV in the UK, which means we have the knowledge and experience to support NBC Nigeria,” said Jonathan Guthrie, CEO, Paywizard. “Transitioning to a digital service opens up opportunities for revenue growth but is fraught with challenges and pitfalls. We believe with our proven knowledge and expertise we are well placed to help, support and advise operators transition to digital.”
Following on from its recent funding of £3.5 million earlier this year, the African pay-TV market is key to Paywizard’s international expansion. The African pay-TV market is growing at 15 per cent year-on-year and the deal with NBC allows Paywizard hopes to expand its international presence and help local service providers’ profit from the new TV landscape.
