East Africa’s largest media group by reach and product portfolio Nation Media Group (NMG) has acquired lifestyle information magazine KenyaBuzz as part of an ongoing shift to becoming a fully digital media house. The deal, which was sealed on Wednesday at a Nairobi restaurant, also includes the acquisition of UgandaBuzz, a subsidiary of KenyaBuzz.
It also operates the Raha Android phone app that was launched in 2012 and has won major awards, including Google Innovation Award in 2013.
The website enjoys access to a large, expanding and loyal readership with its comprehensive and trusted event content and popular movie listing and reviews. NMG Editor-in-Chief Tom Mshindi said the acquisition was one of the several steps the group is taking to broadening its content focus beyond news and to ensure a strong and diversified menu for lifestyle audiences.
“As we welcome KenyaBuzz to our stable, it is a part of a new agenda to reorient NMG into a fully-fledged digital entity,” said Mr Mshindi.
Alix Grubel, the founder and owner of KenyaBuzz, said the partnership had opened a new chapter for KenyaBuzz.
Furthermore, KenyaBuzz is an online lifestyle publication, which also distributes 10,000 copies of its free monthly newsletter in more than 90 locations among them Nairobi, Nanyuki, Mombasa and Kisumu. The website lists events happening around Kenya by date, venue and location among other categories. It also catalogues movies in Kenya by date, time and theater and includes movie details and trailer.
The Lifestyle section captures stories on art and culture, adventure, security, entertainment and celebrities, among others. It also has a business directory with information and contacts for lifestyle businesses.