Hello there,
Did you know that YouTube can identify the most replayed parts of your video? This means you can skip some boring parts of YouTube videos. And no, you haven't missed out because the feature was introduced yesterday, May 18, 2022.
The company said it added a graph that people can use to quickly locate and watch parts played the most by other users. Per YouTube, "if the graph is high, that part of the video has been replayed frequently."
YouTube is also introducing another feature, Single Loop, which allows users to loop a video indefinitely. Moreover, in full-screen mode, a new panel will appear to display video information like the video description, video chapters, and comments.
In addition, YouTube is expanding support for video chapters to smart TVs and gaming consoles. It’s a feature that enables users to skip ahead to a specific video section or easily rewatch that section.
So, today, I’ll be discussing:
- Autochek’s new acquisition
- TikTok’s Branded Mission
- Bamba’s $3.2 million seed
- Jumia’s earnings for Q1 2022
Autochek acquires Morocco's KIFAL
Autochek, a digital automotive commerce company, has acquired Morocco's KIFAL Auto.
This follows Autochek purchasing Cheki's subsidiaries in Ghana and Nigeria and collaborating with the CFAO Group to launch the network in Ivory Coast last year.
Consequently, Autochek is now available in West Africa (Nigeria, Ghana, Ivory Coast). It’s also present in East Africa (Kenya and Uganda). And thanks to the acquisition of KIFAL Auto, it now has a presence in North Africa, specifically Morocco.
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Launched in 2019 by Nizar Abdalaoui Maane, KIFAL claims it’s one of the leading auto marketplaces in Morocco, one of Africa's largest markets for used and new cars.
KIFAL Auto, like Autochek, connects car buyers and sellers and, through partnerships, provides financing and insurance.
Following this acquisition, Maane and the KIFAL Auto team joins Autochek to lead the company's North African expansion efforts.
According to Autochek, it has 1,500 dealers as partners across its markets and partnerships with over 70 financing partners, including Access Bank, Ecobank, UBA, Bank of Africa, and NCBA Bank.
For more information on this acquisition, listen to today's episode of the Techpoint Africa Podcast here.
TikTok to roll out a new ad product
TikTok has announced the launch of "Branded Mission," a new advertising product.
With this product, creators will be able to connect with brands and potentially earn rewards for their videos using this product.
Advertisers can use the new ad product for crowdsourcing content from creators and turning top-performing videos into ads. Also, they can launch branded campaigns and encourage creators to participate in them.
They'll create a brief and distribute it to the creator community to encourage them to participate in Branded Missions. TikTok creators can then choose which Branded Missions to join.
In summary, Branded Mission allows emerging and aspiring creators to respond to ad casting calls directly on TikTok.
So, who is eligible to participate? Branded Missions are open to all creators who are 18 years old and above and have at least 1,000 followers.
Per TikTok, eligible creators whose videos are chosen by brands will "benefit from a cash payment and increased traffic."
Also, the company believes that this product will allow the TikTok community to have a creative hand in brand campaign ads.
Branded Mission is currently in beta testing and is available to brands in over a dozen markets. Plus, it will be available in more markets later this year.
Similar, but kinda different: Recall that earlier this month, TikTok introduced Pulse, a new advertising program that allows brands to place advertisements alongside the platform's most popular videos.
Well, the company emphasises that it is constantly looking for innovative ways to support creators and assist brands in reaching users on its platforms with relevant content.
Besides, the product is currently available in 12 countries, with plans to expand into additional markets by the end of the year.
Techpoint Africa Blockchain Summit
The Techpoint Africa Blockchain Summit (TABS 2022) will take place in two days! Are you ready?
MARA is giving away 20 tickets to attend Techpoint Africa Blockchain Summit. To win, follow the instructions here.
VIBRA is sponsoring 20 free tickets to Techpoint Africa Blockchain Summit (TABS), holding on May 21, 2022. To win, follow the instructions here.
Besides, online tickets are selling out fast; save a seat for yourself here.
Bamba’s $3.2 million seed
Bamba, a mobile-based enterprise software for African micro-merchants, has raised $3.2 million in seed funding to scale its app and expand its team.
The round was led by 468 Capital, with participation from Presight Ventures, Jigsaw VC, and high-profile angel investors, Mato Peric, Leonard Stiegeler, Laurin Hainy, and Thomas Stafford.
Bastian Gotter (CEO) founded Bamba in 2022 as a mobile application company. The startup is focused on simple tools for merchants to manage their customers, record stocks, receive payments, make payments, and access cash advances against their future cash flow.
Bamba aims to be one of the innovators in addressing the lack of digital solutions for record-keeping and payments, which creates a barrier that prevents these businesses from scaling due to insufficient access to credit facilities.
Consequently, it plans to use the funds to expand its engineering team and user base in 12 sub-Saharan African countries where mobile money is prevalent.
Jumia’s Q1 2022 report
Jumia, the pan-African e-commerce company, announced its first-quarter financial results on Tuesday, May 17, 2022.
On today's podcast, Chimgozirim refers to Jumia as "...the guy who never fulfils his potential." What?! 😂😭 That was brutal, if you ask me. What do you think?
Anyway, when you compare this report to the first quarter of 2021, you'll see how Jumia's results demonstrated consistent growth.
Now, you're asking me how. Well, I've got you. The report shows that Jumia experienced significant growth in orders, gross merchandise value (GMV), and revenue.
In other words, orders increased by 40% year on year, from 6.6 million to 9.3 million. GMV increased by 27% year on year, from $198.9 million to $252.7 million. And Jumia's revenue reached $47.6 million, up 44 percent from $33 million in Q1 2021.
However, these figures fell far short of where the eCommerce giant ended 2021, with the last quarter recording GMV sales of $330 million, revenue of $62 million, and orders of 11.3 million.
Despite "continued global supply chain volatility for these categories," food delivery grew 86% year over year, while phones and electronics grew 19%.
Other negatives include its Q1 2022 adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation (EBITDA) loss, at $53 million, up 70% year on year.
If you want to know why Chimgozirim said what he said, don't forget to listen to the podcast.
What I'm reading and watching
- THE IMPACT OF CHILD SEXUAL ABUSE
- Joe Rogan - Depression Isn't a Chemical Imbalance?
- Letting go of God
- What one skill = an awesome life?
- LGBTQ Groomers Busted for Raping Kids
- What Happens To Your Body When You Stop Drinking Alcohol
In case you missed it
- SEC’s rules: Crypto exchange CEOs to retire after 10 years
Opportunities
- Do you breathe crypto or are you simply crypto-curious? Apply for the Coinbase Community Ambassador Program (CAP) — Summer 2022 here.
- How do we feed 10 billion people on a hotter planet? If you have an innovative solution that addresses the prevailing question, apply for the Thought for Food (TFF) Challenge 2022 here.
- First City Monument Bank and the Mastercard Foundation partnered to launch a 15.5 billion Naira ($27.8m) MSME Revitalisation Fund for techpreneurs. Apply here.
- Google is providing 30,000 scholarships to those passionate about technology and keen on gaining skills in Android applications development and Google Cloud. Apply here.
- The Social & Inclusive Business Camp (SIBC) has begun searching for its 6th cohort of African entrepreneurs. Apply here.
Have a splendid Thursday!
Victoria Fakiya for Techpoint Africa.
