Seun, a 55-year-old teacher, uses Opera News to stay updated with current events. After discovering the app on her phone, which her tech-savvy son confirmed came pre-installed, she grew frustrated with the platform’s unreliable content. A particular story about the reopening of schools in the new year, which incorrectly claimed schools wouldn’t reopen, stands out as an example of misleading information.
Since launching in 2018, Opera News has rapidly expanded in Africa. The platform now boasts over 200 million monthly active users and publishes nearly 10,000 stories each day. Its revenue grew 70% last year, solidifying its position as the largest content publisher on the continent.
In an interview, Collins Udeme, Editorial Manager for Opera News in Nigeria, shared insights into the platform’s journey. He explained that Opera News was created to meet the needs of underserved content creators by providing them a platform to share local stories that wouldn’t typically be picked up by traditional media.
The platform initially launched in Nigeria and Kenya before expanding to other African nations like Egypt, South Africa, and Ghana. In 2019, Opera News introduced Opera News Hub, a feature designed to give people more opportunities to share content and create jobs.
Udeme elaborated on the motivations behind the platform, stating, “Some individuals have stories to tell, but they often can’t approach traditional media because they might need to pay for their content to be published. For instance, an educated grandmother might have valuable opinions to share with younger women, but won’t have access to mainstream outlets.”
The latest addition to Opera News is Squad, a community feature that suggests content based on user interests and facilitates interaction among users. Described as a more user-friendly alternative to Twitter, Squad aims to enhance engagement and bring users together.
When asked about Opera News’ rapid growth, Udeme credited its tailored content and data-saving features. “In Africa, where data is costly, Opera News provides all the news you need in one place, so users don’t have to check multiple sources,” he said.
Competition in the Market
Udeme sees Facebook and Twitter as Opera News’ primary competitors. “Our goal is to deliver news as quickly as possible,” he added.
However, some analysts compare Opera News to BuzzFeed, suggesting that while it labels itself as a news platform, it falls short in delivering reliable, high-quality journalism.
Content Quality Challenges
Despite its growth, Opera News faces significant challenges in maintaining content quality. Udeme acknowledged that the platform struggles to manage the over 100,000 registered users contributing content, which sometimes leads to misinformation.
He noted that Opera News is primarily a content distributor, not a publisher, but still faces criticism for spreading false information. To address this, every article includes a disclaimer identifying the author, and when complaints arise, the platform investigates and removes articles that cannot be substantiated.
Udeme also explained how Opera News addresses problematic content: “For minor issues, like clickbait or misleading headlines, we issue warnings. If it happens again, we suspend the writer or remove them from the platform. In cases of severe misconduct, the writer is immediately banned.”
Opera News aims to address such complaints within 24 hours and has operations teams in each market to handle issues promptly.
Looking Ahead
Udeme emphasized that Opera News aims to become a trusted media platform in Africa. With many people still unaware of the service, the company’s focus is on ensuring it’s seen as a credible and reliable news source that can effectively tackle fake news and misleading content.
Seun would likely agree with this sentiment, as she mentioned that her husband had already uninstalled the app, and she was considering following suit.
