NuVu video subscription on-demand service set to launch in Q1 2016 on Airtel Nigeria network
Continuing its aggressive move into the television content delivery space, Ericsson this week announced a new streaming video on-demand service called NuVu, set to become available next year for some 30 million Airtel Nigeria subscribers.
Subscribers will have access to around 3,000 local and international television and film titles; the video platform is able to distribute content during off-peak hours to minimize data costs for the operator and consumer.
Thorsten Sauer, head of broadcast and media services at Ericsson, said NuVu is a “significant landmark for Ericsson and is uniquely positioned to help our operator customers to address a significant untapped market for video content.
“Africa has some of the highest mobile adoption rates globally, with ever-increasing levels of investment and infrastructure,” he continued. “However, downloading is currently preferred to streaming due to connectivity issues. We believe there is a huge opportunity to open a window to a world of content through mobile devices that may not otherwise be easily accessible.
“As one of the largest operators across Africa and the third-largest mobile operator in the world, Airtel is the perfect partner to help us launch NuVu. We are very proud to launch NuVu in Africa and we look forward to rolling out this service to other markets over the coming year,” Sauer said.
NuVu will initially launch as an Android smartphone app with personalization, bookmarking and smart recommendations. Ericsson bills NuVu as a “complete end-to-end technology and content service,” that is easily integrated with an operator’s customer relationship management and payment systems.
