A Kano-based entrepreneur, Jamilu Abdussalan, has launched Northflix.ng, a movie streaming application that enables subscribers to watch Kannywood Hausa films online.
During the public presentation of the App, at the Hausa Film Industry Stakeholders’ Meeting and Iftar in Kano recently, Mr Abdussalam, who is the co-founder of the initiative, disclosed that it took him about five years to create the platform.
According to him, the application, which had become a rival to America’s Netflix, was primarily created to check the tide of piracy in the Kannywood industry.
The co-founder, who is a business strategist, expressed his worries on how the film industry continued to lose profits through exploitative means.
Mr Abdussalam, therefore, frowned at the idea of cinema as the best way to outsmart activities of pirates and attract profits from film production.
He said: “Taking religion, culture and tradition into cognizance, Hausa people do not take their families to watch movies in cinemas or viewing centres.
“Therefore, creating a platform that enables them to watch films at the comfort of their mobile phones is a welcomed idea, aimed at saving Kannywood from losing profits,” Mr Abdussalam added.
“If you produce a movie and decide to show it at the cinemas, they take 60 percent of the profits and give you 40 percent in the name of overhead charges which is exploitative.
“Another snag of cinemas is that a film producer is allowed to only show their movies for two weeks after which they will have to find other means of selling their products.
“Also, many of our people hate going to cinemas with their families to watch films because of religious and moral constraints,” he said.
“On the other hand, the emergence of viewing centres also did not help matters due to lack of accountability by the operators.
“For instance, it is difficult to track the number of people that have paid to watch a film at a particular viewing centre talk less of many viewing centres. This contributes to massive loss of profits by filmmakers,” he added.
Also speaking, the Managing Director of Kano State Radio Corporation, Umar Sa’idu-Tudunwada, described the industry as one of the fast-growing film industries in the country capable of overtaking the oil industry in terms of profit-making.
Mr Sa’idu-Tudunwada said the industry provides job opportunities to teeming youth in the northern region of the country.
“Perhaps if not because of Kannywood that provided jobs to our teeming youths, security challenges would have been worse. Therefore, we must support Kannywood for its benefit to our region.
“Film industry is one of the money-making ventures globally. Even in USA, about $41.7 billion turnovers of film industry last year. So, we need to invest in this sector to grow our economy,” Mr Sa’idu-Tudunwada said.
