Afrostream

Movie streaming platform.

🇨🇮 Côte d'Ivoire Media & EntertainmentShut down

Epitaph

“Here lies Afrostream. It streamed African, African-American, and Caribbean film to viewers across nearly thirty countries. Licensing costs climbed, a marketing budget no match for Netflix drained the tank, and Series B talks collapsed. The credits rolled before the funding did.”

Overview

Born: 2014 (Year)
Died: September 2017 (Month)
Lifespan: 4 years
Fate: Shut down
Headquarters: 🇨🇮 Côte d'Ivoire
Category: Media & Entertainment
Stage at death: Series A
Primary cause: Funding or runway
Contributing causes: Business model or unit economics, Competition, Infrastructure dependency

Death certificate

Timeline

November 2013Founded
Tonjé Bakang founds Afrostream in France
2015Series A
Raises roughly $4 million following Demo Day
June 2015Y Combinator funding
Raises $120,000 from YC
September 2015Service launch
Streaming service launches September 1, 2015
April 201610,000 subscribers
Reaches subscriber milestone
November 2016Investor talks collapse
Advanced Series B discussions fall through
March 2017Final investor withdrawal
Last prospective investor pulls out March 17, 2017
13 September 2017Shutdown announced
Afrostream ceases operations in Europe and 24 African countries

Autopsy report

Why did Afrostream shut down?

Afrostream, a Y Combinator-backed streaming service for African, African-American, and Caribbean content, shut down on September 13, 2017 after failing to secure a Series B round. High content-licensing costs, a marketing budget dwarfed by rivals like Netflix and Showmax, and cash flow problems that left it unable to pay wages forced the closure.

What Afrostream attempted

Afrostream tried to be the go-to legal streaming service for African, African-American, and Caribbean movies and shows, launching September 2015 and eventually operating across 24 African countries plus France, UK, Belgium, Luxembourg, and Switzerland.

What worked

Raised $120,000 from Y Combinator (2015) and roughly $4 million in a Series A after Demo Day; reached 10,000 subscribers by April 2016 and operated in nearly 30 countries.

Early warning signs

Advanced Series B investor discussions collapsed in November 2016; the last prospective investor withdrew on March 17, 2017; the company then spent April-August 2017 unsuccessfully shopping itself to more than 10 potential buyers while cash flow problems made it hard to pay staff.

What happened

After launching in September 2015 with YC and Series A backing, Afrostream grew to 10,000 subscribers by April 2016, but rising content-licensing costs and a marketing budget it couldn't match against Netflix and MultiChoice's Showmax made retention difficult in a market unaccustomed to paying for streaming. Series B talks fell apart in November 2016 and the last investor pulled out in March 2017; after a failed months-long search for a buyer, founder Tonjé Bakang announced the shutdown on September 13, 2017.

Lessons for future builders

Content streaming is a capital-intensive game where one missed raise can stop everything, especially against rivals who outspend you on rights and marketing. Secure runway well ahead of need, and build differentiation that is cheaper to defend than exclusive licences bought at scale.