Kwesé, the TV service of telecoms provider, Econet, has signed a deal with leading sports media company, ESPN to deliver exclusive content to audiences in 19 African countries.
The deal will enter into effect in early 2017 and will feature the launch of an ESPN channel exclusive to Kwesé in Botswana, Democratic Republic of Congo, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Malawi, Namibia, Nigeria, Rwanda, Swaziland, South Sudan, Sierra Leone, Tanzania (including Zanzibar), Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe. ESPN’s SportsCenter will also be produced for Kwesé’s audience.
As part of the deal, ESPN and Kwesé will launch an African edition of the ESPN website and mobile app in mid-2017. KweseESPN.com and its accompanying app will marry ESPN’s coverage of global sports with local African sports news, analysis and perspectives from Kwesé. The website and app will feature up-to-the-minute news and analysis by sports journalists with a unique African perspective. Live scores and data for all major sports events as well as video news and highlights from ESPN and the Kwesé Sports channels will also be featured.
Joseph Hundah, Econet Media CEO said concerning the deal, “Ultimately our goals are the same, to bring fans the best in global sports. The synergies between Kwesé and ESPN allow us to achieve that goal by leveraging our collective ability to deliver premium African and global sports programming to sports fans across Africa. We look forward to collaborating with ESPN in Africa and providing African sports fans with access to global sports like never before.”
This is yet another win for Kwesé in its bid to becoming Africa’s largest sports media company. In July 2016, the company entered into an exclusive broadcasting deal with National Football League (NFL) which was brokered by ESPN Media Distribution.
Kwesé will be hoping to gain more market share over industry leader, MultiChoice’s SuperSport with this new deal.
