MTN inks deal with music channel Trace

29.06.2011
As African telecom players innovate to beat their competitors, South Africa's MTN Group has pulled a first by announcing a brand and content licensing agreement with Trace, an entertainment television channel.

Trace is largely a music video channel that promotes urban contemporary music videos and is available on various cable and satellite pay television platforms.

As Africa's Internet speeds go up and prices come down, courtesy of fiber-optic cables, one of the major challenges facing Africa is a lack of locally relevant and available content to attract more people online.

The deal with Trace will let MTN offer what it has called innovative entertainment services to the fast-growing youth segment within the African mobile market.

On Monday MTN launched the offer in Cameroon, and it is due to be rolled out in multiple locations. Launches are planned in Ivory Coast, South Africa and Nigeria in the next few months.

"MTN youth subscribers will benefit from the unique entertainment experience around the Trace brand, including exciting local and international content on entertainment and sports, live events and television," according to a statement issued by the MTN Group.