Big news in the SAMIP family: African podcasting firm Volume secures MDIF deal
Audio start-up Volume has become the latest SAMIP cohort member to secure an investment deal with Media Development Investment Fund (MDIF).
Founded in 2017, Volume was one of the first media start-ups to join SAMIP, which is itself an MDIF initiative to accelerate innovation and sustainability among independent media in South Africa. Like a number of SAMIP cohort members, Volume had previously been part the jamlab accelerator programme in Johanneburg.
Since then, Volume has become one of South Africa’s most prolific and innovative podcasting companies, producing more than 20 local and international podcast series. These include the award-winning South African investigative podcast Alibi, the ground-breaking WhatsApp voice-note series about misinformation What’s Crap on WhatsApp?, and the globe-spanning series on digital rights, Kill Switch. Volume’s latest release is Too Many Enemies, an investigation into the assassination of South African billionaire Wandile Bozwana.
MDIF’s investment with Volume is part of an exciting growth for podcasting in South Africa and the region. Within the SAMIP cohort alone:
- Radio Workshop, a social enterprise launched by Children’s Radio Foundation, has piloted a unique continent-wide training to develop audio storytelling in Africa;
- Daily Maverick’s flagship podcast, Don’t Shoot the Messenger, was named one of Apple Podcast’s Best New Shows in 2020;
- Agri-news publisher Food For Mzansi received multiple 2020 Africa Digital Media Awards for best-in-class use of podcasts and related products for audience engagement.
As SAMIP’s Program Manager, Bilal Randeree, notes in the official announcement:
“The SAMIP team is proud to be part of Volume’s journey. We’ve seen them grow, adapt and innovate to become a serious player in the audio space.”