Hope on arts monetisation
Creatives now have a chance to monetise their content such as music, pictures and live show performances through the ulizingati.com website.
The initiative, formally rolled out on July 7 this year, is a brainchild of Ulizinga Company. Payments are made through Airtel Money and TNM Mpamba through the Paychangu Payment Gateway.
In an interview, Ulizinga Company marketing officer William ‘Episodz’ Phoya said the idea to come up with the platform was facilitated by the coming of the payment gateway which has made it possible for content creators to integrate their websites with Paychangu.
He said: “The website that allows content creators to monetise whatever content they create. This can be in form of music, pictures, videos and talk shows. You charge fans to access your content immediately or do monthly subscriptions.
“One can stream a live performance where you can charge people even per second such that when their money runs out, they can be logged out.”
Phoya said so far several content creators, including Jetu, Jaakev Madness of the popular Truth or Drink podcast, Mikozi Online, rapper Phyzix, online series Mushroom Shade and singer Provoice have signed up on the platform.
“The content creators are excited about the initiative as they can now directly monetise their work. We have about 6 000 subscribers at the moment. The possibilities on the platform are endless depending on one’s fan base and how much they are willing to spend on you,” he said.
In a separate interview, Jaakev, real name Kelvin Ngumuya, said it is encouraging to know that content creators can now put a price on their work.
He said: “We are now converting the views into money. You post anything and put a price on it. If one has to watch, they have to pay for it. We all know the Malawi YouTube does not pay as much and this is a better option.”
The Truth or Drink podcast, which featured musician Moses Makawa, has been touted as a record breaker after it made about K200 000 in 24 hours. The host said he will give part of the money to Makawa while the other part will go to three lucky winners.
“Sharing the money with the guest will depend on the agreements between the guests and me. I use a lot of money which does not tally with what we get in return,” he said.
On his part, Mikozi Online chief executive Bright ‘Excess’ Chiligo said the platform will allow content creators not only to rely on event bookings to earn an income.
He said: “We work directly with content creators and if they benefit from this platform, that benefit spreads to the industry as a whole including us as an online promotion establishment and content creators.”
