South Africa's first LGBT video-on-demand (VoD) channel has launched, looking to provide content that unashamedly tells the stories of Africa's lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender communities.

PrideTV, which provides South Africa and the rest of Sub-Saharan Africa with an affordable library of LGBT movies and series, told ITWeb Africa it does not expect its focus to provide any problems in certain African markets, as the service is fully online and can be accessed privately from any smart device.

For ZAR79 per month or ZAR790 annually, users can access a slate of movie titles celebrating the best of LGBT independent studios and movies. The service is via web and caters for both iOS and Android operating systems.

African LGBT content is available but not prolific, with local generally serious and factual. Aside from this, PrideTV is also sourcing international content, predominantly from the United States (US), United Kingdom (UK) and Europe, with some Australian content coming shortly.

"Traditional TV channels have historically offered only small smatterings of one-dimensional LGBT content that ironically reinforces stereotypes instead of shattering them. PrideTV reverses the trend to restrict access to LGBT themes by South African and African broadcasters," said Joanne Raphael Katz, Pride TV content manager.

The company said the demise of the Out in Africa Gay and Lesbian Film Festival has dramatically reduced access to independent LGBT films, while homophobic and transphobic viewer complaints and repressive censorship laws across the continent devastate diversity.

PrideTV aims to address this lack of access, launching with over 200 content titles from all over the world and across all genres. Around 65% of the content is gay male focused, while 35% deals with lesbian and transgender themes.

"We believe that there is a gap in the market. It's about time that the neglected LGBT community has a voice, with content that spans all the issues that people can relate to. Not to mention the entertainment value that we are offering," said Katz.

"We know that LGBT people are early adopters of technology so we're confident that they will join the online streaming revolution. The best part is that we can reach anyone in Sub-Saharan Africa."

PrideTV plans to add more local content in the near future, while it also hopes to produce its own original content, such as chat shows, as well as streaming live from events like Pride.

"We want to create not just a movie site but also a lifestyle site for the LGBT community that works with and supports the community," said Alicia Antill, marketing media officer for Pride TV.