Seasoned media executive Gideon Khobane has joined Amazon as the director for Prime Video Africa.
Khobane joins with a remit to support the growth of the Prime Video service across sub-Saharan Africa, including South Africa and Nigeria. Working closely with the Africa Originals team, headed up by Ned Mitchell, the content acquisitions team, led by Ayanna Lonian and product teams responsible for launching customer features, Khobane is tasked with helping to provide a mix of original and exclusive TV series and movies for existing Prime Video members and to attract new customers in sub-Saharan Africa.
The executive, whose experience over his 18-year career ranges from pay-TV to free-to-air broadcasters across sub-Saharan Africa, most recently served as a group executive responsible for general entertainment for the Multichoice Group, and previous to that, served as CEO of SuperSport International and channel director at M-Net. Khobane will continue to be based in South Africa.
Khobane will oversee the implementation of programming and marketing plans for Prime Video Africa’s content offering, which includes series “The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power,” “Citadel,” “The Boys,” “Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan” and “The Grand Tour”; films “Air,” “Shotgun Wedding” and “Die Hart”; African originals “Gangs of Lagos,” “LOL: Last One Laughing Naija” hosted by Basketmouth, “LOL: Last One Laughing South Africa” hosted by Trevor Noah; and local acquisitions “Brotherhood,” “King of Thieves,” “Battle on Buka Street,” “Sista,” “The Men’s Club,” “The Honeymoon,” “The Fury,” “Umbrella Man” and “Atlantis.”
“Khobane’s new role signals Prime Video’s continued, long-term investment in sub-Saharan Africa, and commitment to creating a service that is diverse, attractive and engaging to all Prime Video members in the region,” the streamer said in a statement.