Naspers appoints Nuvu exec to head OTT video unit

Naspers has appointed the managing director of Ericsson’s Nuvu on-demand service, Niclas Ekdahl, as the CEO of its recently formed connected video unit.

Niclas Ekdahl

Ekdahl is due to take up his new role on September 10, heading up the unit that runs the Showmax and DStv Now internet TV services in Africa and is responsible for developing new over-the-top services for the MultiChoice group.

“OTT video services are growing rapidly across Africa,” said Imtiaz Patel, CEO of Naspers’ video entertainment business.

“We’ve made a healthy start preparing for this future with our Showmax and DStv Now services and it’s now time to consolidate those learnings in a single unit to build the best possible services for our customers.”

Ekdahl brings more than 19 years of experience to the role, including a number of years spent at MTG, latterly as CEO of Viaplay.