Has eExtra Decided To Call It Quits For Bollywood Dramas?

Before Star Life and Zee One, there was eExtra that brought India to South Africa with shows like Madhubala, Yeh Teri Galiyan and Piyaa Albela. But in recent months, it appears that eExtra's Kuiertyd is building up it's airtime on the channel.

By the afternoon, eExtra now has daily repeats of Yosef, Sout Van Die Aarde, Chrysalis and Dokter Ali. This was the timeslot used to accommodate ramp up it's rivalled offering for Star Life now that's been reduced to a one hour slot for Naagin.

Uzozisola - Regrets gave Naagin the weight it needed but after e.tv scrapped further airings. Naagin just became an outsider on eExtra as daily repeats of e.tv soaps take up the morning with Kuiertyd taking up the afternoons and primetime.

Empress In The Palace, a former show on eExtra has since found its way onto eSeries. At this point, I wouldn't be surprised if eMedia Investments decided to move all its Asian stories to eSeries in order to combat with those repeats.

As for Bollywood dramas, I feel like eExtra's story had come to an end I mean it never gained much recognition. For DStv viewers, there was Zee World with Glow TV on Openview and with it's afternoon slot most viewers were probably at work by then.

It could never garner the Zee World recognition it deserved even with Star Life and Zee One only airing repeats by then.

As for Kuiertyd, that's another story as Ouma Sarie and Droomvelore's broadcast on e.tv those shows were able to attract over 3 million viewers. Their continued success led KykNET to ramp up their own portfolio with Dikker As Water and Landman.

For sometime now, several Openview consumers didn't really see the need of having eExtra air these shows. Especially since eMedia Investments had been outsourcing from their competitors who had branded channels (i.e. Zee One) on Openview.

This market as some people recall has been overcrowded on both DStv and Openview. Not that it's a bad thing but in scenarios like this it's hard for a broadcaster like eExtra to offer alternatives if there's bigger prey out there.

Development Alert: eVOD Originals uMbali And Splintered Pieces Resurface On Openview

eMedia Investments had added the first seasons of uMbali and Splintered Pieces to eSeries on weeknights at 22:15 and 22:45 respectively. The latter was produced for eVOD and eMedia Investments had limited it's reach to Openview.

Following eVOD's rollout in the market, eMedia Investments had been giving some of its content an open window on their other platforms. But for shows like uMbali and Splintered Pieces, e.tv had been struggling to accommodate these shows.

They attempted to have it take up the timeslot of the Sunday movie block on e.tv and with minimal success for its movie offering. eMedia Investments decided to yank it to weeknights at 22:00 and that too had a limited run.

Now they've limited it's reach to Openview instead of allocating it on eExtra since it's also available on DStv or try to accommodate these shows on e.tv a lot better. One of the two would have helped these shows get more ad revenue compared to eSeries.

Synopsis for uMbali

Mbali is a "beguiling beauty queen" who uses her looks and street smarts to climb the social and economic ladder. After her boyfriend is arrested and her family loses their primary financial support, she vows to do whatever it takes to escape her circumstances.

Her pursuit of "the good life" leads her to steal husbands and boyfriends, creating a trail of enemies. She eventually finds what she believes is true love with her sister's fiancé, Peter, but her past and relentless ambition constantly threaten her safety and the lives of those around her.

Synopsis for Splintered Pieces 

The series explores the lives of two friends caught in a web of secrets and blurred boundaries. It focuses on Linda, a successful therapist who is bored in her relationship with her boyfriend, Paul.

On her birthday, Paul throws a surprise party where Linda meets and sleeps with a photographer named Jade. The situation becomes more complicated when Linda also sleeps with Tebello, the husband of her best friend Tshepi.

Tshepi is struggling with infertility, and when Linda falls pregnant, the paternity of the baby is unclear. A DNA test eventually confirms Tebello is the father, leading to a heartbreaking arrangement where Linda gives the baby to Tshepi and Tebello to raise as their own. 

Canal+ Might Overhaul The Current DStv Structure And Take A Dig At SuperSport

As it is understood, MultiChoice has lost almost 3 million DStv subscribers in the last two years and this is the reason Canal+ is backing out from further price increases. The focus has shifted on returning the company back to its 2023 projections.

Post the takeover, MultiChoice reportedly had 23.5 million 90 day active subscribers and this dropped further by 11% to 18.5 million. In South Africa, the DStv Premium base (including Compact+) saw a drop of 96,000 subscribers.

Since last year, MultiChoice had been exploring the possibility of unbundling SuperSport from the current DStv offering to make the costs flexible. This isn't the first time such experiment occurred and it's not known why they hadn't pursued it earlier on.

In France, Canal+ already offers the Canal+ Sport bouquet which includes sports from rival brands like DAZN and Eurosport. There's even a base package with select sports like UEFA Champions League, Formula 1 and Moto GP.

It is currently priced at €34.99 (R671, 89).

Of course, it's Canal+ Afrique's operations uses the same model as DStv which is why there's a lot of skepticism about a SuperSport only package. Canal+ CEO had dismissed the idea stating that "everyone who has tried this has failed". 

If such exists, it's going to be almost as pricey as your current DStv Premium bouquet. It's less likely they're going to make it cheaper as the current DStv structure helps subsidies the costs.

This new structure MultiChoice has been testing out for DStv will only benefit the non sports fanatics on lower tiered packages.

DStv Premium has been in decline for 10 years so it's a safe bet that MultiChoice will gradually use this offering to phase out that market. The plan for this offering was to have 3 sports package one for football with other sports on another package.

There's plenty of Premium subscribers that don't watch football and MultiChoice would give them the option to exclude it from their offering. They'll be times where you don't feel like watching SuperSport and MultiChoice would make that possible too.

In the end, you as a Premium client can continue catching shows like Landman and Doc on M-Net while watching One Piece on Netflix. You can do all this for under R700 and still have R300 to yourself.

Reminder: Hawaii Five-O Returns For It's 10th And Final Season On eSeries Alongside CSI: Miami And NCIS: Los Angeles

CSI: Miami Season 10 (FINAL)

This is the tenth and final season of the American crime drama series CSI: Miami, which follows a team of forensic investigators in Miami using cutting-edge science and police work to solve complex crimes. It premiered on CBS on September 25, 2011, and concluded on April 8, 2012, consisting of 19 episodes—the shortest season in the show's run. 

The season picks up from the previous cliffhanger, with Horatio Caine and his team pursuing a serial killer while dealing with personal and professional challenges, including betrayals and high-stakes investigations like a hotel murder and a tornado-destroyed crime scene. 

It starred David Caruso as Lt. Horatio Caine, Emily Procter as Calleigh Duquesne, Jonathan Togo as Ryan Wolfe, Rex Linn as Frank Tripp, Eva LaRue as Natalia Boa Vista, Omar Miller as Walter Simmons and Adam Rodriguez as Eric Delko.

Key episodes include the premiere "Countermeasures," where the team tracks a killer, and the finale "Habeas Corpse," wrapping up major storylines. 

CSI: Miami has been airing on the channel at 21:25 since March 2.

 

NCIS: Los Angeles Season 10

This season of the action-packed spin-off series focuses on the elite Office of Special Projects (OSP) team in Los Angeles handling high-stakes undercover operations against threats to national security. It aired on CBS from September 30, 2018, to May 19, 2019, with 24 episodes. 

The plot kicks off with the team recovering from a dangerous mission in Mexico, introducing new allies like retired Navy Admiral Hollace Kilbride, and tackling cases involving stolen military tech, assassins, and international intrigue. 

It starred Chris O'Donnell as G. Callen, LL Cool J as Sam Hanna, Daniela Ruah as Kensi Blye, Eric Christian Olsen as Marty Deeks, Barrett Foa as Eric Beale, Renée Felice Smith as Nell Jones and Linda Hunt as Henrietta "Hetty" Lange.

Standout episodes feature "To Live and Die in Mexico" as the opener and "False Flag" as the finale, emphasizing team dynamics and espionage. 

Season 10 starts March 16 at 20:30 

Hawaii Five-0 Season 10 (FINAL)

The tenth and final season of the rebooted police procedural series centers on an elite task force combating crime in Hawaii, blending action, drama, and island culture. It premiered on CBS on September 27, 2019, and ended on April 3, 2020, with 22 episodes. 

The storyline wraps up long-running arcs, including Steve McGarrett solving his father's case from a decade ago, while handling cases like mob assassinations, tunnel collapses, and Halloween horrors. Former cast members like Masi Oka and Michelle Borth return as guests. 

It stars Alex O'Loughlin as Steve McGarrett, Scott Caan as Danny "Danno" Williams, Ian Anthony Dale as Adam Noshimuri, Meaghan Rath as Tani Rey

Beulah Koale as Junior Reigns, Chi McBride as Lou Grover and Katrina Law as Quinn Liu.

Notable episodes include the premiere "Ua 'eha Ka 'ili I Ka Maka O Ka Ihe" and the series finale "Aloha," providing closure to the team. 

The tenth and final season of Hawaii Five-O starts March 17 at 19:35.

DStv Stream Expected To Merge Into Showmax Replacement App

Canal+ is planning to launch its own streaming service in MultiChoice markets as consumers bid farewell to Showmax. Further content from the service will now be redirected to M-Net, Mzansi Magic and KykNET.

Canal+'s streaming service which might fold under DStv Stream, viewers get to watch live TV and content on demand. They plan is to also utilise other apps such as Netflix and Amazon Prime Video with VIU likely to form part of this duo.

This was a feature MultiChoice made exclusive to Explora Ultra and since Canal+ takeover in late 2025, the company is cleaning house. They already scrapped M-Net's contract with HBO as well as that of SuperSport for the Winter Olympics.

In October 2025, Canal+ leadership indicated plans to merge DStv Stream, Showmax, and the Canal+ app into a single "super app" to combine content and reduce costs. As seen already, Showmax with all that Comcast filter is going out the window.

As mentioned, Canal+ will likely use the existing footprint of DStv Stream to expand its streaming ambitions as opposed to starting from scratch. It fits well with the company's structure on having the same content viewed across multiple platforms.

Of course, the problem part of retaining the DStv structure would be costs as Showmax would give you the freshest content for under R99 while on DStv you need at R500. Unless Canal+ has a backup plan consumers might not be persuaded by this.

But then again, MultiChoice was in discussion about possibly unbundling it's DStv offering with SuperSport serving as an add-on or standalone package. This would take the strain off paying R1000 for the full package.

Canal+ had deployed similar mechanisms in France where consumers would pay for select content and with the MultiChoice deal these endeavours are expected to accelerate.