Discop Africa, to be launched in February 2009, is the first event of its kind on the African continent to be centred around pre-booked meetings between buyers and sellers of television content. The event is to be organised by the European-based company Discop, which holds an annual content business market in Eastern Europe.
Based on eight months of research, which involved interviews with 230 international television executives, producers, distributors and advertisers involved in Africa, Discop decided to take its successful content market format to Africa. Since 1991, Discop has facilitated pre-organised meetings between buyers and sellers of television content as well as facilitating business between production and advertising executives operating in emerging markets. In 2005 Discop also partnered with the influential US-based association, National Association of Television Program Executives (NATPE), which stages an annual conference and exhibition in Los Angeles in the US.
‘From our research we concluded that TV stations in Africa were interested in working with global advertising agencies, especially those which had established offices in Africa. Advertising agencies were also keen to meet with African broadcasters,’ says Patrick Jucaud, general manager of Discop.
Read more in the July 2008 issue of Screen Africa
