CASE STUDIES FROM AFRICA

lack of funding, a high level of digital piracy, an increase in the number of video rental outlets, a
decrease in the number of operational cinemas, and the growing importance of audiovisual
media in the daily life of local communities. However, the national production of TV series
accounts for only 11.9% of total broadcast drama on national television.
In light of the important Burkinabe diaspora in neighbouring countries (Côte d’Ivoire: 3 to 4
million, Ghana: 2 million, Sudan: 1 million, Mali: 1 million), national TV drama and reality
shows represent an opportunity for advertisers to reach an international audience. The business
of supplying television services is somewhat unusual in economic terms in that broadcasters
operate in what are sometimes called ‘dual product’ or two-sided markets. 32 Two sorts of
output are created: first, content (i.e., television programs, news stories etc., arranged into a
schedule); and second, media audiences. Audience attention is routinely packaged, traded, and
sold to advertisers, and the commercial income it currently generates accounts for almost 50%
of the revenues of the global television industry. 33 Indeed, foreign advertisers represent an
increasing part of advertisements on the national channel (Radio Television of Burkina, RTB),
leading to an inflow of foreign currency. Such an approach has its importance when talking
about broadcasting services as final demand services, although no direct payment is made from
the consumer to the supplier. There were 112 radio stations and 14 TV stations registered in late
2012 in Burkina Faso. For Statistics Canada (2007), broadcasts can be thought of as the
distribution of live or pre-recorded performances to consumers via electronic media (Mode 1).
This definition would include radio and television broadcasts, be they over the airwaves, cable,
satellite, or Internet.
Music and Sound Recording
Digital piracy is a hot button issue for the music industry, hence its related services are also
experiencing a strong decline in terms of activities and incomes. The BBEAC in 2012 counted 29
production companies in the music industry for only two involved in distribution. The music
industry is characterised by a large number of small players whose employees are not always
declared. Additionally, several associations—e.g., Association des commerçants et vendeurs de
K7 et CD du Kadiogo (ASCOVECA), Programme canadien de bourses de la Francophonie
(PCBF)—are supporting the sector and its artists.
With the evolution of digital and electronic supports, and considering that trade of music is
very closely linked to the use of new digitised tools and alternative platforms for musical
content and radio, the Burkinabe music industry is in the early stages of a new era where
Internet will play a major role as a distribution and promotion channel. The critical point
concerns the place that current services providers will occupy in the new digital landscape and
in the electronic trade.
32
Doyle (2012). ‘Audio-visual Services: International Trade and Cultural Policy’. ADBI Working Paper Series, No.
355.
33
UK Office of Communications (Ofcom), 2010, 113, cited in Doyle, 2012.
231