Aboubakar Coulibaly, Group CEO of New World TV in Togo, has urged broadcasters to move beyond traditional audience reach and develop a deeper understanding of how, when and where audiences consume content.
He said the broadcasting industry could no longer focus solely on how many people watched or listened to a programme, arguing that broadcasters needed detailed information about their audiences and their consumption patterns.
Mr Coulibaly made the remarks during a panel discussion at the Broadcasters Convention 2026 in Accra.
According to him, broadcasting was historically centred on reach because television stations were primarily competing against other broadcasters.
“In the past it was about reach,” Mr Coulibaly said, explaining that broadcasters mainly sought to ensure their content was available and then measured how many people could see or hear it.
He said the changing media environment required broadcasters to consider more detailed audience information, including “who is talking to, who is listening to us, when is doing that, what is the channel”.
Mr Coulibaly also highlighted the growing importance of content surrounding major events, saying audiences increasingly wanted to access material before, during and after an event.
He noted that highlights, photographs and other supporting content could sometimes become as important to audiences as the main event itself.
“Today we can see that people want to see what was before, what happened during and the highlights,” he said.
Mr Coulibaly said the development demonstrated the need for broadcasters to understand audience behaviour beyond conventional measures of reach.
His comments formed part of discussions on the changing television landscape and how broadcasters can respond to evolving patterns of content consumption.
