Yet another competitor is poised to enter the increasingly crowded video-on-demand (VOD) market in South Africa. However, the new player, called SAVuka TV, is promising something a little different: it will offer only local content to its audience.

It is also the first VOD service in South Africa to target a black audience specifically.

“SAVuka TV will appeal to all viewers with connections to rural and township life,” parent company Pecil Productions said in a statement.

Pecil Productions is a local film production house founded in 2010 by Percy Mthethwa and Siphamandla Kunene.

The service, aimed at smartphone users, will showcase content produced by South Africans and will launch with a range of price plans, including a R35/month subscription option. SAVuka TV will go live on Wednesday, 9 December.

“The app allows content providers ownership of the content they produce, while consumers get the very best of local entertainment on the go,” said Pecil Productions.

“The videos — dramas, reality shows, documentaries and other lifestyle programmes — are typically eight minutes in length and the content partners benefit from a profit share model,” it said.

Kunene, who is SAVuka TV’s creative producer, said the company hopes to “create and develop an audience that appreciates innovative, edgy and probing local content, directly on their mobile phones”.

SAVuka TV will launch first on Android with six reality shows: Soap Stars, Straight back, Out and Living It, Salon Nightmares, Diski Hits and Mrs, and Behind the Pulpit.

“These series feature some prominent actors and stars in South Africa, including Motlatsi Mafatshe, Thato Molamu, Maurice Paige, Sisa Hewana, Babalwa Mneno, Sharon Dee, Tony Oseyemi, Charnelle and Nathan Paulse,” it said.

“Shows that are currently in production include a breakfast show with Sindy Mabe, as well as magazines and lifestyle shows. SAVuka TV also launches with entrepreneurial and spiritual content,” it added.

Mthethwa, who serves as head of content, said SAVuka TV’s content “projects a positive image of black South Africans and provides them with free educational information they desperately need to make informed decisions”.

SAVuka TV offers various payment options via the vukatv.com website. Single-day access costs R9,99, while five days’ viewing is R19,99. A monthly subscription is R35.