Sony Group, one of the world’s leading creative entertainment and technology companies, recently launched a new initiative to support the growth of entertainment businesses in Africa. The Sony Innovation Fund: Africa is a program that will invest $10 million in seed to early-stage startups in the gaming, music, movie, and content distribution sectors in Africa, including Ghana.
About The Fund
Last year, SVC completed the first closing of Sony Innovation Fund 3 at $215 million to back all stages of emerging technology companies. The subsidiary manages all of Sony’s venture investment activities through SIF3, Sony Innovation Fund (SIF); Sony Innovation Growth Fund by IGV, a joint venture with Daiwa Capital Holdings; and Sony Innovation Fund: Environment.
There’s no set time frame to deploy the $10 million or a set number of startups the fund plans to invest in. However, it is expected that ticket sizes for the innovation fund to range from $250,000 to $1 million.
The Ghana Creative Industry
Ghana’s entertainment industry has been growing steadily over the years, producing talented artists, filmmakers, musicians, and content creators who have gained recognition both locally and internationally. Some examples of Ghanaian success stories in the entertainment industry include:
- Sarkodie, a rapper and entrepreneur who has won several awards, including the BET Award for Best International Act: Africa in 2012 and 2014.
- Shirley Frimpong-Manso, a filmmaker and producer who has directed and produced several acclaimed movies, such as The Perfect Picture, Potomanto, and Potato Potahto.
- An African City, a web series created by Nicole Amarteifio that follows the lives of five young women who return to Accra after living abroad. The series has been dubbed as Africa’s answer to Sex and the City and has attracted millions of viewers online.
This is where Sony’s Innovation Fund: Africa could make a difference. By investing in promising startups and entrepreneurs in the entertainment sector in Ghana, Sony could provide them with:
- Financial support to scale their businesses and reach new customers.
- Technical support to leverage Sony’s technologies and expertise in the entertainment field.
- Strategic support to collaborate with Sony’s entertainment businesses within the Group, such as Sony Music Entertainment, Sony Pictures Entertainment,, and PlayStation.
- Networking support to connect with other investors, partners, and mentors in the global entertainment ecosystem.
By The Numbers
Sony’s Africa-focused fund will serve as a much-needed boost to the continent’s entertainment tech startups, which have struggled to receive consistent venture capital over the years.
According to Partech Africa, in 2022, startups received $42 million, representing 0.9% of Africa’s total venture capital investments despite the enormous potential to be unlocked in gaming, music, movie, and content distributions, critical areas within the industry that Sony is particular about.
Sectors like video-on-demand subscriptions in Africa are projected to hit 13.7 million in 2027, up from 4.89 million at the end of 2021, with revenues tripling from $623 million in 2021 to $2 billion in 2027. Netflix is said to have invested €160 million in film content production in Africa since 2016.
No Time Frame For Fund Deployment Yet
Gen Tsuchikawa, CEO of Sony Ventures, stated that in addition to the fund’s seed and early-stage investment strategy, it will offer follow-on investments to its portfolio companies.
There’s no set time frame to deploy the $10 million or a set number of startups the fund plans to invest in. However, it is expected that ticket sizes for the innovation fund to range from $250,000 to $1 million.
“We have initiated due diligence on a few startups, but I can’t share any details at this time. We plan to start our work with South Africa, Kenya, Nigeria and Ghana, but there is a possibility of expanding the scope of the project in the future.”
According to Tsuchikawa, the fund will initially be supported by the Sony Ventures team in Europe; however, the company is currently working to hire a full-time member on the continent who can take on the venture capital sourcing function.
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