By Our Reporter
Last Friday, MultiChoice Uganda held its annual media showcase under the theme “Celebrating Our Voices, Telling Our Stories.”
The virtual showcase was carried on MultiChoice Uganda’s DStv and GOtv social media platforms showcasing the wide range of entertaining content that the Pay TV giant has added since September 2020 when the inaugural showcase was held.
For Uganda, the launch of Pearl Magic Prime, the second channel dedicated to Ugandan content, was perhaps the biggest highlight. The channel is now home to riveting drama series Prestige and Sanyu. Both shows were nominated for Best TV Drama in the 2021 Uganda Film Festival Awards and Prestige won the accolade.
The promise to showcase the best of Ugandan storytelling is perfectly captured in this year’s theme which explores telling stories of diversity, local content, culture, innovation and celebration of the life MultiChoice has breathed into these stories, enabling various Ugandan voices be heard across its viewing platforms.
Speaking at the event, Hassan Saleh, the Managing Director, MultiChoice Uganda said; “As we celebrate our brand history, I want to resound MultiChoice’s commitment to investment and strategic partnerships as we strive to deliver outstanding value for our customers. Through the MultiChoice Talent Factory, a CSR initiative intended to train passionate film actors, producers and writers, we have provided immense opportunities and harnessed skills of youth that we believe will play a pivotal role in shaping the film industry in the country.”
Saleh added that, “We have also gone ahead to recognize the talents that we have in our country, by offering a platform for content to be showcased. Through strategic partnerships we’ve also been able to award outstanding film creations in Uganda. For instance, with the recently held Uganda Film Festival, MultiChoice Uganda as a platinum sponsor staked millions of cash prizes for best creative films and offered sponsorship for film mentorship programs with M-Net studios for the best performers.”
As a fulfilment of the promise to deliver great entertainment, Saleh disclosed that there will be a new East African channel launching later this year. The channel will showcase premium East African productions from Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania and Rwanda.
Colin Asiimwe, the Head of Marketing, MultiChoice Uganda remarked that, “As MultiChoice Uganda, we are mandated to provide our viewers with thought-provoking and entertaining content hence the expansion and addition of several new channels curated to fit our Ugandan cultural nuances. Pearl Magic Prime, a homegrown entertainment channel is set to amplify viewing experiences with world-class content like Sanyu, a telenovela, Prestige, a drama series, Mama and Me, a dramedy, Story Yangeso much more as we look to connect with our audiences.”
“We also recently launched HONEY TV, our first pan African lifestyle channel that offers an exciting blend of African lifestyle content, including bold and unscripted shows by African producers and talented personalities for curious and connected African audiences,” Asiimwe added.
Wild Earth, a real-time wildlife channel that circumnavigates the action in the jungle and offers a thrilling wild life adventure is also a recent addition to MultiChoice’s content offering.
“Premium content and quality viewing is at the heart of MultiChoice Uganda therefore we shall be launching new channels and adding a variety of content specs to keep you locked and entertained 24/7,” Mr. Asiimwe concluded.
Multichoice has been telling African stories for over 20 years, reaching far and wide across the continent. Its DStv and GOtv platforms have continued to grow over the years, launching numerous local channels with more planned as the group increases its local content investment.