Could Paramount Look To Merge Cartoonito With Nick Jr.?

Paramount is looking to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery after Netflix walked out of the bidding war. As preschool brands like Cartoonito and Nick Jr. likely to be owned by the same company, with this merger set to close by the end of 2026.

According to Paramount, they intend to keep most of the company intact but with the amount of debt they'd be digesting it's hard to believe they'll retain both Cartoonito and Nick Jr. if this deal closes.

Cartoonito is home to shows like Bugs Bunny Builders, Batwheels and Grizzy And The Lemmings. While Nick Jr. offers Paw Patrol, Dora The Explorer and The Tiny Chef Show.

Even if Paramount plans to keep Nickelodeon and Nick Jr. while inheriting Cartoon Network and Cartoonito. There's definitely going to be some restructuring content wise, likely for its international variants of Cartoonito.

Cartoonito had been struggling to find it's footing in the US despite having hits shows like Batwheels. All the while Warner Bros. Discovery continued expanding its preschool slate the development of Hey BMO and Foster's Funtime.

Of course the problem part here is that none of these shows have a platform and with this buyout by Paramount. This offering will most definitely get picked up by Nick Jr.

Nick Jr. has global appeal and it's history dates to the 80s as opposed to Cartoonito which dates to the mid 2000s in the UK/Europe so it's safe to bet they will handle this department.

Cartoonito will likely lean more toward shows like Mr. Bean and Grizzy And The Lemmings perhaps become a complementary/extension to Nick Jr. Think of how Candle Media structured it's Moonbug and Blippi And Friends channels internationally.

Nick Jr. could offer a programming block on Cartoonito perhaps for older shows like Nella The Princess Knight, Bubble Guppies and Rusty Rivets.

Development Alert: Zee Dunia, A Swahili Dubbed Bollywood Channel Will Also Be Added To MultiChoice's DStv

Not long ago, it was reported that MultiChoice will be adding Sporty TV to DStv platforms soon most likely in Kenya. As the channel is already distributed on eMedia Investments' Openview platform for viewers in South Africa.

Now it looks like MultiChoice will be adding another TV channel to DStv platforms soon, Zee Dunia.

Zee Dunia is a Swahili and English dubbed Bollywood channel operated by ZEE Africa. It offers  storytelling with dramas, romance, action, family shows, movies, local programs, and international news since 2025.

Zee Dunia will be joining Zee TV, Zee Alem, Zee World, Zee Magic, Zee Bollymovies, Zee One and Zee Zonke list of channels to be 

It is broadcast on free-to-air platforms like Pang and Signet in Kenya, plus live streaming on its official YouTube channel. It is aimed mainly at Kenyan audiences so there's no doubt that Zee Dunia is aimed at East Africa as seen with Maisha Moto.

Compared to Zee Zonke, most of Zee Dunia's content had already been seen on Zee World. This includes Begusarai, Curse Of The Sands and Zara's Nikah with the only real exceptions being Marafiki Milele and Maisha Yangu Mdundo Wangu.

Reminder: NBA Playoffs Begin On ESPN Africa From April 19, 2026

NBA PLAYOFFS

The NBA playoffs is the annual elimination tournament of the National Basketball Association (NBA) held to determine the league champion. The four-round, best-of-seven tournament is held after the league's regular season and its preliminary postseason tournament, the NBA play-in tournament.

The Playoffs begin on 19 April 2026.

NHL PLAYOFFS

The Stanley Cup playoffs is the annual elimination tournament to determine the winner of the Stanley Cup, and the league champion of the National Hockey League. The four-round, best-of-seven tournament is held after the NHL's regular season. 

Please note: 

All fixtures and schedules are subject to change. 

Broadcast times are provided in CAT (Central African Time) 

How to tune in to ESPN:

ESPN: DStv 218, StarTimes 248 

ESPN2: DStv 219, StarTimes 249

MultiChoice Might Be Adding Sporty TV To DStv Consumers In Some African Countries

Sporty TV is a 24/7 free-to-air sports channel operated by Sporty Group, known for SportyBET. It positions itself as a "home of premium football" for African audiences, offering a mix of live matches, highlights, and specialized sports programming.

Since last year, it had been distributed on eMedia Investments' Openview platform offering a variety of events from Premier League, La Liga and Serie A. Most of which is already accessible via MultiChoice and Canal+ Afrique consumers.

Now it looks like MultiChoice might be adding Sporty TV soon but not to DStv customers in South Africa and probably most of Africa. As tests for this channel has been labelled as Sporty TV Kenya.

Why would MultiChoice want with Sporty TV as it a majority of content is on SuperSport?

But my understanding in this regard is that Canal+ took control of the company since September 2025 and stripped SuperSport of its decision making in Randburg as all of this is now done in Paris.

Post the takeover, Canal+ has been very vocal about the difference in strategies between both parties. 

MultiChoice offered Africa's leading streaming service Showmax which rivalled with it's DStv offering and cost the company billions in losses. Canal+ was all about alignment with it's content spread across platforms.

The same could be said about Canal+'s procurement of content they've done deals with Sky Sport, Bein Sport and DAZN. MultiChoice tried piling up these duties under SuperSport and that never panned out when ESPN first exited the African space.

You can only assume with the addition of Sporty TV, Canal+ has taken up a new approach in procuring content for MultiChoice customers. Canal+ is more focused on leveraging of existing IPs while MultiChoice wanted to be that have it all company.

Could Canal+ Afrique Also Be Looking To Add Base Pulse Soon?

During the month, MultiChoice added Base Pulse which serves as a Pan-African based brand operated by Pulse Entertainment. It serves as a replacement to MTV Base broadcasting African music ranging from Amapiano, Gqom and Kwaito.

Questions making the round now is whether Base Pulse could be looking to debut on Canal+ Afrique as a test card for MTV Base had also been inserted on their platforms.

Considering Canal+ Afrique's parent company also owns MultiChoice it wouldn't seem far fetched to think Base Pulse could be included on their platforms. Seeing as they already distribute M-Net Movies and Zee World as part of an add-on. 

It could also be another TV channel seeing as MultiChoice caters for English speaking markets while Canal+ Afrique manages French markets.

Maybe a French version to Base Pulse seeing as the channel is distributed across MultiChoice markets and not only in South Africa. It could also be the same feed seen in MultiChoice markets as Canal+ Afrique also offers Anglophone content.