7 Years Ago, Discovery's Real Time Was Launched In Place Of Animal Planet And To Combat TLC On MultiChoice's DStv

Real Time is described as a female based lifestyle channel initially offering content from TLC, Animal Planet and Investigation Discovery. Overtime, TLC was gradually phased out from the lineup in favour of Food Network and HGTV.

MultiChoice added Real Time as a replacement to Animal Planet but the problem with its inclusion was that it was being tailored for Easyview package. Basically, they were older seasons to shows including those of Animal Planet it was even worse on the TLC side.

TLC was regarded as the wedding channel and Real Time was what TLC looked like without those shows which included Little People - Big World, Toddlers & Tiaras and Sister Wives. As mentioned, Real Time no longer airs on from TLC it likely had to do with its inclusion.

TLC is available to most DStv subscribers it didn't make much sense to launch a channel to offer their shows half of the time especially since TLC would still rerun shows like Kitchen Boss.

Honestly speaking, I kind of question why Real Time even existed I get some subscribers don't have Investigation Discovery, HGTV or Food Network. But then the latter now takes a chunk of TLC's airtime making Real Time look more competitive than complementary.

On a DStv standpoint, consumers can just downgrade from Compact to Easyview seeing as shows like Guy's Grocery Games and Pool Kings are now on Real Time. Hollywood Demons isn't as prehistoric as most of the shows yet it aired on Real Time.

With its parent company undergoing a split or possible sale, I'd imagine some restructuring or due diligence could be underway. Real Time barely markets any of their content and if you're someone who doesn't have access to the main networks for the shows its challenging.

Real Time could as well have aired the first three seasons of Disappeared and you were waiting and had given up on a fourth season. Then it suddenly airs after a few months or a year but you weren't tuning in because no marketing had been done for you to have known.

This has been going on for sometime and imagine in a couple of years Warner Bros. Discovery or whatever is left of it will probably just close Real Time. As mentioned, TLC has split part of its airtime for Discovery's other cable networks making Real Time redundant.

At the same time, it's likely that we could see more consolidation within the industry perhaps with Discovery Family since it's been leaning heavily on Discovery Channel.