On the occasion of the launch of A+ Ivoire on the CANAL satellite on Tuesday, January 15, 2019, Damiano Malchiodi, its CEO, shares with us his ambitions and vision for the future of this new channel, which will enrich the Ivorian audiovisual landscape.
As a reminder
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A+ Ivoire will also be broadcast on Ivorian digital terrestrial television as soon as it is launched.
A+ Ivoire is a channel aimed at the Ivorian public. Can you tell us about its positioning and ambitions?
We want to make A+ IVOIRE a channel that meets the expectations of Ivorians. A+ IVOIRE is a popular, family-friendly, positive entertainment channel. Our slogan, "always closer," perfectly sums up our intention. Unlike A+, which is a channel consisting almost exclusively of series, with A+ Ivoire, we have designed a channel based on a diverse program schedule in terms of both entertainment and series. What could be more natural than to call on the Ivorian ecosystem and local producers and service providers to produce these programs in order to express this closeness?
What are the highlights of the schedule?
We will start the afternoon with an entertainment show called "ON SE DIT LES GBE," a daily public debate program where all popular topics will be discussed. This program will be hosted by Brice GUIGRE. It is an original format because we have incorporated specific ingredients and we wanted to set a standard of respectability. We are very vigilant and have taken care to create a popular program that respects viewers and their beliefs. This program is produced by OSSOO TV, an Ivorian production company.
The program will be rebroadcast in the evening so that those who work can watch it. In prime time, we are launching "DEFENDS TES 50,000" at 7:10 p.m. This daily game show, hosted by Adama DAHICO, is also intended to be broadcast throughout Côte d'Ivoire to reach a wider audience.
We are also counting heavily on "DECONEWS," a weekly 15-minute offbeat comedy show: a fake news program with a very Ivorian flavor, hosted by DECOTHEY. It's DECOTHEY's world, his very personal universe with zany news, crazy reports, surprising guests, and unbelievable weather forecasts…
And in terms of fiction, "Ma grande famille" is set to be a big hit…
Indeed, "Ma grande famille," which will also be broadcast on A+, is our flagship program for this fall. Our idea was to make a sequel to the cult series "Ma famille," using the same actors, of course: AKISSI DELTA, herself an actress, director, and screenwriter for the series, MICHEL BOHIRI, MICHEL GOHOU, CLEMENTINE PAPOUET DIGBEU CRAVATE, and many others, but trying to go even further with a whole new generation of actors and stars from several African countries. Unlike "Ma famille," which took place in the same location, the action in "Ma grande famille" takes place in Côte d'Ivoire as well as Mali, Senegal, and Burkina Faso. It is a choral symphony that focuses on 12 families that we will follow over the course of 469 26-minute episodes.
469 episodes: that's a lot…
It's true: it's a mammoth task. Today, 250 episodes are already in post-production. Everything rests on the shoulders of AKISSI DELTA, who works like a conductor. We also called on Alex OGOU, who came in as a luxury supervisor to strengthen the production.
We are very proud to have been able to produce this 100% Ivorian series. No one other than an Ivorian could have told this story. This production also reflects our commitment to contributing significantly to the development of the audiovisual sector in Côte d'Ivoire and to promoting our channel through new and established African talent.
DTT has not yet been launched in Côte d'Ivoire. Where will the channel be available?
In Ivory Coast, A+ Ivoire will be broadcast on satellite position 205 and will replace A+ on channel 31. On DTT, the channel will occupy channel 5 and will be free to access.
Outside Ivory Coast, A+ will continue to occupy channel 31 and A+ Ivoire will occupy channel 205.
How are the Ivorian advertisers you have started to meet responding to A+ Ivoire and, more generally, to DTT channels
? There are two schools of thought: those who say, "We'll wait and see," and those who understand the value of having new channels tailored to the Ivorian market.
Our role is to make the market understand that, thanks to DTT, these channels will cover the entire country free of charge. This is particularly beneficial outside Abidjan, where we can clearly see that customer recruitment is reaching saturation point. The challenge for advertisers tomorrow will be to recruit people outside Abidjan who have never seen their products before.
However, there is still much to be done to raise awareness of DTT, and the awareness campaign that the IDT must implement with the help of operators is crucial. We are eagerly awaiting this campaign and are available to participate in it.