WarnerMedia Partners With StarTimes To Launch TOONAMI, The Home Of Superheroes Channel, In Sub-Saharan Africa

In the first-ever deal with StarTimes in English speaking Africa, WarnerMedia’s TOONAMI is now available across sub-Saharan African countries. Subscribers in Nigeria, Kenya, Tanzania, South Africa, Uganda, Zambia, Ghana, Malawi, and Mozambique will be able to enjoy a tidal wave of non-stop, uninterrupted, 24-hour programming, jam-packed with top-rated superhero action.

WarnerMedia’s TOONAMI has been in existence across Africa for the past three years and targets all superhero fans, offering top-rated series’ such as DC Comics’ Batman, Superman, The Green Lantern, Young Justice and The Justice League as well as popular animated series Teen Titans among others.

Plenty of pulse-raising, action-packed films have also been packaged for StarTimes subscribers, making TOONAMI the go-to destination for action and animation movie enthusiasts of all ages. The branded TOONAMI movie block will screen a host of animated feature films during prime-time Mondays to Sundays as well as Saturday mornings. Weekends will be jam-packed with the Super Hero Universe stunt, showcasing popular superheroes’ heroic acts and deeds in movies like Green Lantern Emerald Knights, Justice League: Throne of Atlantis, Batman: Monster Mayhem and All-star Superman.

“WarnerMedia has an existing relationship with StarTimes in French-speaking African regions, which has allowed us to distribute Cartoon Network, Boomerang, Boing, WarnerTV and CNN, among other franchises. We look forward to creating more platforms within this partnership to widen our footprint on the continent,” says Guillaume Coffin, VP Head of Commercial and Business Development Turner France, Africa & Israel.

“We are delighted to expand our partnership with WarnerMedia toward Anglophone Africa. StarTimes is committed to provide access to high-quality content to all family members, and especially to kids who in many countries have to stay home right now. TOONAMI comes at the right time to strengthen our kid’s channel portfolio,” says Lily Meng, Head of StarTimes Media Division. 

TOONAMI, Home of Superheroes Channel, is available on StarTimes’ Basic Bouquet DTT (channel 355 and 275 in Uganda), and Smart Bouquet on DTH (channel 306) for all the energising superhero action African families need!

ENDS

Highlights:
Justice League
Forces of evil, chaos, and destruction await. Not even protectors like Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern or the Flash have a chance alone. But together as the Justice League, they are a metahuman force (and a hope) to be reckoned with.

Justice League Unlimited
A continuation of the Justice League animated series finds the original members of the team joined in their battle against crime and evil by dozens of other heroes from the DC comics universe.

Batman: The Animated Series
Vowing to avenge the senseless murder of his wealthy parents, the millionaire playboy Bruce Wayne secretly assumes his crime-fighting alter-ego: ’Batman’, and devotes his life to wiping out lawlessness in Gotham City.

Superman: The Animated Series
Follow the adventures of Superman the legendary superhero as he battles the forces of villainy and continues his quest for truth justice and the American way.

Teen Titans
Robin the Boy Wonder leads his own team of superheroes, The Teen Titans. Together they battle the forces of evil wherever they appear like the enigmatic Slade, the diabolical Brother Blood or the malevolently cosmic Trigon.

Young Justice: Invasion
In Young Justice: Invasion being a teenager means proving yourself over and over - to peers, mentors … and to yourself.

Justice League Action
Batman, Superman and Wonder Woman return to lead the DC Superheroes against an array of their most infamous foes, as well as new enemies such as space invaders, magical forces and supervillains intent on destroying the planet.

Green Lantern: The Animated Series
Hal Jordan, a test pilot from planet Earth, is the first human being to join Green Lantern Corps, an extra galactic police force in order to keep peace and justice through the entire universe.

Batman The Brave and The Bold
The Caped Crusader teams up with heroes from across the DC Universe, delivering nonstop action and adventure with a touch of comic relief. Blue Beetle, Green Arrow, Aquaman and others fight alongside Batman, with formidable foes around every corner.

Superman: The Animated Series
Follow the adventures of Superman the legendary superhero as he battles the forces of villainy and continues his quest for truth justice and the American way.

New Channel Alert: SABC Education Coming Soon To DStv And StarSat

As you all know SABC Encore is getting canned on DStv and SABC told a user through a media enquiry that MultiChoice had already planned to can the channel in 2018 and knew of its demise long before the public. Now another SABC channel is expected to be added on DStv really soon which will also be available on StarSat.

SABC Education, as most already know launched earlier this month. At the time viewers could only recieve the channel through DTT and online platforms and through an interview at Expresso on SABC 3 with the general manager at SABC he mentioned that they were in negotiations with pay platforms so that they can hopefully carry the channel.

Now it looks like DStv will be one of those pay platforms to carry the channel alongside StarSat. So far no release date has been issued yet on both sides but StarSat will add it on channel 313 my guess would be from 1st June around the time SABC Encore gets terminated and channel 316 could be it's channel number for DStv since some parts of Africa allocated a channel in that section.

StarSat hasn't responded to the media regarding the channel while MultiChoice is oblivious about it with regards to SABC Encore as SABC stated through an enquiry they are exploring the possibility of carrying the channel through another platform and StarSat has become that platform that usually sources reject or scrapped channels from DStv like AMC, Toonami, Glow TV just to name a few so they might add it.

SABC Education carries repeats from SABC 1-3 as well as archived content. As bad as it may sound the channel is beneficial for children's education. The good thing about these repeats, they don't have a lot of timeslots on the main SABC channels.

Toonami Has Been Added To Startimes Or StarSat Few Weeks After The Channel Stopped Airing On MultiChoice's DStv

As you already know DStv had Toonami running as a month long pop-up channel on the DStv platform to almost all DStv customers until the end of April even after its removal the channel still had an ongoing schedule for the rest of May.

For some reason the channel has been added to the Startimes (or StarSat) platform without any explanation or clarification from the platform on the duration of the channel or whether they plan to keep it full-time which seems unlikely.

Toonami which is owned by WarnerMedia targets the same audience as Cartoon Network the only difference is the channel is catered for superheroes. The channel carries action, drama and adventure.

The channel airs repeats of old DC Animation that once aired on Cartoon Network such as Batman, Green Lantern, Superman and Young Justice along with DC Movies.

This channel is just ripping off Superhero HQ for those of you who had DStv Compact back in March of last year at the time the channel was already ripping off the full-time Toonami channel on Kwesé TV till the brand shut down it's pay-tv service along with the full-time channel that had anime and selected Cartoon Network series at the time before being reduced to nothing but a pop-up channel.

It wouldn't surprise me if the channel eventually resurfaces again on DStv even after the channel's removal people still want the channel if it was on Compact you'd some happy faces over the channel's removal but since they made it more accessible more people grew attached to it cancelling out those that recieved the channel already under another name.

Two New Channels Might Be Added To StarTimes (StarSat) Soon

StarSat is might be growing the number of channels from SPI International with two additional channels, Timeless Drama Channel and FashionBox. They already carry Filmbox and FashionBox.

Gametoon features interactive gaming/second screen gaming, game reviews, tournaments esports and viral content fueled with best of the Web and much more. The channel gives its viewers a unique opportunity to play dedicated games on their mobile devices and share scores along with social profile pictures on air.

Timeless Drama Channel is a Turkish entertainment channel featuring Turkish drama and Turkish telenovelas with series such as The Uncle in Black, Kurt Seyit and Sura, 20 Minutes, The End and many more. The channel also airs movies.

Timeless Drama Channel was unveiled back in 2018 with rollouts put in place so far the channel was confirmed for StarSat and StarTimes while MultiChoice postponed several linear and radio channels with no details on when they'll actually be available.

Limpopo TV Greenlits Church And Gospel Series

The Chat with Priscilla, hosted by author, actress and Bible teacher, Priscilla Shirer, is a talk show that covers a variety of topics for women such as singleness, sexuality, stress, & marriage, just to name a few. Interwoven into each episode is a message of faith & how to respond to these issues as a Christian woman.
Priscilla speaks around the world at churches and other events, Shirer made her film debut in the film War Room. In October 2016, Shirer was recognized as one of four prominent women of faith. Shirer also featured at the 47th GMA Dove Awards.

She has also authored several books:
"Fervent; A Woman's Battle Plan for Serious, Specific and Strategic Prayer"
He Speaks to Me: Preparing to Hear from God Discerning the Voice of God: How to Recognize When God Speaks And We Are Changed: Encounters with a Transforming God
A Jewel in His Crown: Rediscovering Your Value as a Woman of Excellence.
She has Leading Film Features in:
The War Room, as Elizabeth Jordan.
I can only imagine, as Mrs. Fincher, Bart Millard's teacher Overcomer, as Principal Olivia Brooks. Our hope for you, our viewers, is that it will be a safe place for honest conversation.
Priscilla Shirer
The Host and Producer of a Fresh Faith Program Called THE CHAT with Priscilla Coming to Limpopo TV Every Sunday 18:30 CAT

GOSPEL XCLUSIVE.
A Unique Gospel Industry Magazine Show that will be Focused on The Gospel Industry and the Gospel Singers.
Profiling and showcasing some of the Famous, Upcoming and Legendary Names of the Industry.
With a Combination of Exclusive Interviews and Latest Music Videos.
Be Sure not to miss this Special Every Sunday 17:00 & Repeats Every Tuesday 12:00 CAT.

The channel is expected to launch on DStv and StarSat

Mindset Network Launches New Primary School Pop-Up Channel

With lockdown for Covid-19 being the uppermost thought in everyone’s mind Multichoice and Mindset Network, launched by Nelson Mandela in 2003, is due to launch a channel dedicated to Primary School learners on 1 April 2020. Mindset Pop will feature educational programming covering the entire GET (Primary School) phase, including ECD, Grades 1 to 3 but with a focus on the Grade 4 – 9 curriculum.

Even though you are still on holiday we want you to be prepared when schools re-open. Mindset PoP will deliver live lessons daily with 6 fresh hours every day. We will bring you Literacy and Numeracy as well as Maths, Natural Sciences, English, Life Orientation, Art and Physical Education activities. A website will be available for downloading worksheets and information sheets that you can work through with our expert teachers. Lessons will come live from our studios where our expert teachers will unpack the concepts you need to understand as well as point you to additional resources. Lessons are based on the South African CAPS curriculum but are also aligned to the Cambridge curriculum.

Mindset’s CEO, Dylan Green says: “We are very relieved to be working with Multichoice to spread academic excellence during the lockdown. Remember that while we often focus on matric the key concepts are taught in the Foundation Phase. We are looking forward to bringing a whole new and exciting world of learning to DStv subscribers everywhere.”

Mindset PoP will be available to all subscribers across the DStv platforms in South Africa and Africa. Tune into channel 317 to find out more about this fantastic education channel!

This might be the same test channel coming to OpenView channel 122 and possibly StarSat for now there's no confirmation about it as this press release only has to do with MultiChoice.

Nina Novelas Added On StarTimes With Starsat Soon To Follow

TV channel ‘Nina Novelas’ is available on StarTimes platform since March 06th, 2020.

Nina Novelas is a 100% Telenovelas channel offering the best Telenovelas from Africa, Brazil, and the rest of world to the fans of the genre. Nina Novelas provides a rich program, 24/7 and an environment in which the modern African women can express themselves.

Nina Novelas is available in both French and English since 2015. The channel has seized exclusive access to the entire Globo TV Catalog, the world’s leading producer of Telenovelas with 2 500 hours produced per year in Brazil.

Telenovelas from Brazil are admired for their production quality and for playing a dual role of mirror and window to the society.

The Head of StarTimes media division, Lily Meng, said, “Telenovelas have been enjoying a constant success among our subscribers. With a majority of Brazilian novelas, Nina Novelas will ideally complete channels such as ST Novela E and ST Novela E Plus. Furthermore, Nina Novelas offer numerous African series, which is consistent with our strategy of promoting local productions.”

What Happened To TBN's Smile Channel On Starsat And StarTimes?

Back in 2019, Starsat and StarTimes subscribers awoke only to discover Smile TV was no longer available on the platform. Both operators haven't informed the media beforehand instead they only inform viewers through an enquiry that the channel went offline while TBN Africa remained quiet about the whole removal.

To start off the year, Smile got scrapped worldwide according to the admin of Smile TV media account and viewers can only find it online worldwide or through DVB2 in the United States.

It's possible that both Starsat and StarTimes found out around the time the channel left as viewers were asking about the channel and they were silent for a couple of hours.

Do I believe these companies will replace it?
No
Is it worth replacing?
Not really, there's plenty of religious channels so they'll more likely recommend subscribers to those channels or maybe source out "another" kids channel that won't be added as a replacement channel

Positiv.tv is a Christian-Based Movie Channel launched in 2020 offering family-friendly films that you might have seen on TBN. It was adapted from a programming block that aired on Smile TV.

This channel is said to be Smile TV's successor along with the youth based channel Juce TV. It's funny how broadcasters label replacements in linear TV. First minute you're watching a classic drama such as Bones on Universal TV next minute you wake up only to see a sports tournament such as Tokyo 2020 on the Olympics Channel. To me it seems more of a turnover than a replacement.

TBN should have informed the media and it's distributors that these kids channels will be scrapped so these operators can prepare themselves better and possibly seek out other alternatives instead of them having a run around and viewers pointing fingers at their them since they package the channel. Either way the damage has already been done and these operators lost several channels throughout 2019 as 2020 moves they're still sourcing out replacements.

Starsat/StarTimes Silently Return The Disney Channels After Commercial Issues But Fail To Answer The Mystery Question

Disney has quietly returned it yanked FOX channels as well as the two rebranded ESPN channels to the Chinese-run StarSat pay-TV operator after an absence of four and a half months following a commercial disagreement and contract dispute.

The Walt Disney Company removed its entire FOX Networks Group channels set - FOX, FOX Life, FOX Portuguese, National Geographic, Nat Geo WILD, National Geographic Portuguese, Baby TV, Voyage, National Geographic French, and Nat Geo WILD French – from the Chinese-run StarTimes StarSat with the channels that abruptly went dark without warning in October 2019.

StarSat bizarrely claimed that it decided to remove specifically the FOX channels (although not FOX News) because of alleged "5G cellphone signal testing interference" affecting just these channels. The Walt Disney Company however said that it decided to remove its channels from StarTimes/StarSat since it became fed-up with ongoing commercial issues at the pay-TV operator and decided to pull all of its FOX-supplied channels after negotiations had failed.

In addition, the FOX Sports and FOX Sports 2 channels that were rebranded to ESPN and ESPN following the Disney takeover of 21st Century Fox, failed to materialise as promised in mid-September on StarSat which caused huge embarrassment to both Disney and StarSat.

The FOX channel set quietly flickered back on StarSat on Thursday with no announcement from Evert van der Veer, the vice-president, media networks of The Walt Disney Company Africa or Christine Service, senior vice president of The Walt Disney Company Africa.

Jared Stokes, senior communications manager at The Walt Disney Company Africa said in response to a media enquiry on Thursday from that the company won't issue a press release but that "We can confirm that our channels are currently being provided and are available on StarTimes/StarSat" and referred media enquiries to StarSat.

Disney was asked why the FOX channels and ESPN were returned to StarSat but didn't want to answer the specific questions. In a mobile message sent to just subscribers on Thursday, StarSat said: "Dear Customer, all FOX channels are back on StarSat now". StarSat on Thursday said it would respond with answers posed in a media enquiry but hasn't by the time of publication of this report on Friday morning.

The question remains on what will happen to the supposed replacement channels at the time these Disney Channels went dark Starsat did mention trying to sourcing out alternatives so far you only have Smithsonian and Love Nature that were once replacements for National Geographic. Now, some should wonder if they even sourced out those former replacement channels.

Not only that but Starsat lost Smile of a Child, Trace Africa, Kiss, POP and Animaux so how many of these could eventually be replaced and due to all these Disney Channels will Starsat be able to handle the costs or will they cut back on even more channels and replace some with low standard channels.

Another possible thing is that they could hike the fees like MultiChoice had done this year on some if not all packages and possibly add some more channels to give customers more to indulge and reason to keep subscribing.

BBC Africa Content Goes FTA On Soweto TV

BBC Africa TV programmes are now available to viewers in South Africa on the free-to-air channel Soweto TV.

The deal means viewers to Soweto TV also gain access to the BBC’s global news programme for children produced by Angelina Jolie, My World, multi award-winning investigative series Africa Eye, weekly health, fitness and food programme Life Clinic, and women’s discussion show # TheSheWord.

Simon Kendall, Business Development Director for BBC World Service, said: “We are delighted that audiences in Gauteng and throughout South Africa will now be able to view an exciting selection of BBC programmes through our new agreement with Soweto TV. We look forward to working more closely with Soweto TV and to building on this exciting new presence in South Africa.”

Statement From Chairperson Of Soweto TV Regarding The Mismanagement Of The Channel

Soweto TV (DStv 251/Starsat 488) was mismanaged for almost a decade and was on the verge of liquidation when all the members of the board resigned with immediate effect leaving only 1 member who was also the founding members of Soweto TV. The regulator ICASA instructed the remaining member to properly constitute a team of directors who will stabilize the channel and take it forward.

The new board member appointed an investigator and the following was discovered:
- Soweto TV has not been compliant with the regulator in regards to news and factual content.
- The channel accumulated an unpaid SARS bill amounting to R54,439,400 million rand.
-No performance management or monitoring contracts to measure deliverables and accountability.
- The channel had excessive amounts of repeats for the year 2017, 2018 and 2019 with constant incorrect electronic program guide for viewers.
- The previous management never submitted tax returns for years with violations and penalties from the revenue service
- There was no policy or any form of governance on the day to day operations, service providers were appointed with no procurement processes and business processes were compromised.
- Churches and key community organization's terminated their contracts with the channel.
- Channel had 84 staff members, a couple of them were "ghost" employees earning a salary with no trace of working at Soweto TV, some have been with the channel for almost a decade with no contribution to the channel.

Interventions to date
- The Board has alleviated the risk of the channel being liquidated.
- The Board has engaged ICASA and relevant stake holders on its plans to stabilize the channel and ensure that Soweto TV succeeds.
The board took a resolution to appoint Mr Thabo Molefe as the new CEO and the following has been affected:
- Since September 2019, the channel has committed to paying R14,439,400 to R4,567,000
- The channel has complied with the local content regulation and continues to reflect the community back to its audience.
- The channel has instituted both an acquisition and editorial policy putting Soweto TV amongst the leading broadcasters in South Africa.
- We've implemented new automated commercial systems that enable advertisers and sales agencies to monitor their investment and maintain schedule stability.
- The channel has formulated policies that speak to governance, accountability and performance.
- The channel has attended MultiChoice content and management workshops.
- The channel has hosted auditions for new shows with new faces to be introduced in February 2020.
- 9 new shows have been produced by and being released throughout the next months
- The brand of Soweto TV has been revived and in 2020 the audience will have an opportunity to view more local content and engage with a number of new initiatives.

The new Board is committed to the success of Soweto TV, once we have achieved programming and commercial stability, the Board will roll out the next phase of their work program which will comprise of increased community engagement including scheduling editorial consultants as well as membership rules to enable increased community participation.

The new board will not be directed by the opportunistic campaigns which are waged by people who have failed the Channel before. The community must not be misled by such people.

Starsat And StarTimes Subscribers Lose 2 More Channels: Smile TV And Animaux

Just as the whole drama concerning the Disney channels came to light with Starsat on a fast track to source out more replacement channels. Viewers woke up to the loss of two more channels Smile was removed sometime last year while Animaux was removed a week ago.

Smile (formerly Smile of a Child) is Christian-based network owned and operated by the Trinity Broadcasting Network. The network is aimed at children between the ages of 2 and 12 years, and offers a mix of children's religious and family-oriented programming. Trinity also supplies several channels and programming across Africa through DStv, OpenView, Azam and several more.

Animaux is a French television channel run by AB Group with animal-based/inspired programming for the whole family.

Subscribers have been rampaging onto Starsat and StarTimes account demanding answers on the sudden loss of these two channels and after week they finally reply and yes they confirmed that they'll no longer supply those channels and are looking into possible replacement channels.

So far, they only managed to National Geographic and Wild with cheaper and more affordable channels such as Love Nature and Smithsonian channel. Now they have to source out even more replacement channels Lord only knows how many of these channels are likely to being replaced. With a channel such as POP it wouldn't matter since you can find something similar on Star Kids of course it's not the same but both channels don't have original content and target the same audience.

Predictions For Pay-TV And Free-To-Air In South Africa

Just to let you know some of these are just opinions
DStv:
-FOX Life gets canned early 2020
-National Geographic & Wild, Telemundo, eNCA, Soweto TV and Disney Channel switch to HD
-MultiChoice cuts back on the monopoly in sports and keeps matches worth investing
-Da Vinci Kids, Fiesta TV, AfricaNews and Trybe TV make their way to DStv
-ESPN returns after many years
-MultiChoice cutbacks on channels to save costs and minimise the monthly fees like the rest of Africa
-Timeless Drama Channel, Adult Swim, Universal Kids or DreamWorks, African Animation Network, another e.tv channel and Paramount launch
-A decline in Compact & Compact Plus and an increase in Family and Access
-SA Youth TV makes its way to DStv in 2020
-Disney XD shuts down or repositions itself as future programming makes its way to Disney Channel, Junior and Plus
-Ginx eSports moves to another channel number or shuts down
-More local channels are added
-Travel Channel shuts down and further programming moves to TLC, Discovery Family and Real Time
-OUTtv and a revamped Sony Channel returns
-PBS Kids becomes a permanent channel

OpenView/e.tv:
-e.tv grows the number of their ebranded channels from 8 to 15
-OpenView reaches 3 million homes
-A music channel similar to Mzansi Music, Channel O and Dumisa launches
-A gospel channel is added
-Glow TV is scrapped
-A new educational channel makes its way
-e.tv distributes content from Netflix, Disney Plus and M-Net

Starsat:
-Euronews makes its way to Starsat
-A new reality and general entertainment channel makes its way
-A new sports channel makes its way
-Dove Television, God TV, and Trace Mziki get added
-A portion of the channel's are removed

SABC:
-Get into more debt
-SABC 3 shuts down and most of the content is transmitted on SABC 1 and 2
-Cancels more shows
-Gets more money and wastes it on more irrelevant programming and overpriced sports
-Loses more international programs like The Amazing Race and Survivor
-Becomes 60% local and 40% international

Add your predictions and I might include it

Sony Pictures Television Revives The Sony Channel In The United Kingdom, Is South Africa And The Rest Of Africa Destined For The Same Fate?

<p dir="ltr">On Tuesday September 10th, 2019 Sony Pictures Network (SPN) relaunched the Sony Channel in the UK the only difference is the channel now carries factual programming besides international drama series.</p>

<p dir="ltr">SPN supplied channels such as Sony Channel and Sony Max to MultiChoice's DStv and Cell C's defunct service Black along with POP (which was also available on Starsat) and True Movies 1. Before their departure, the company stated they were examining other possibilities in the territory and remain excited about future programming opportunities.</p>
<p dir="ltr">Let's face it SPN has hit rock bottom in Africa and it's gonna be a long bridge to build. They launch a channel, nurture it and as it grows they walk out the door. You had Animax which didn't do so well and might have fractu red any possibilities of having anime on DStv anyways its not like the channel is doing well internationally then you had its successor Sony Max a decent reality channel for men which will never be heard from again.

Unlike the SABC, SPN has potential Gogglebox was the reason for its downfall ever since the whole scandal relating to that show. They layed low for the past 2 years along with their channels so viewers got endless repeats (kind of like what's being seen with FOX Life) only for those same repeats to sit on other channels with viewers creating some seperation from those channels giving MultiChoice some reason to pull the plug.

No one knows why MultiChoice decided to remove the Sony Channels long before SPN exit from the market maybe they figured something like this would happen or maybe they know more of Sony's plans within the market either way they have a tough journey ahead of them.

Starsat/StarTimes Launches Two New Channels To Celebrate The Festive

Starsat/StarTimes has lost several channels throughout the year including the KISS, Star Series1, Trace Africa and FOX channels (ESPN 1 & 2 formerly FOX Sports, National Geographic & Wild, FOX & FOX Life) which now belong to Disney and now they've unveiled the "new" channels which are set to replace National Geographic and National Geographic Wild from 10  December judging from the lineup who knows if they consider the two new additions replacements for FOX and FOX Life or if they're still sourcing out more replacement channels.

The Smithsonian Channel is an American pay television channel that is operated by Smithsonian Networks (SNI/SI Networks L.L.C.), a joint venture between CBS Corporation's Showtime Networks and the Smithsonian Institution. The channel features original non-fiction programming that covers a wide range of historical, scientific and cultural subjects.

Love Nature is a Canadian specialty television channel owned by Blue Ant Media . The channel broadcasts documentaries and television series related to wildlife and nature.

If you ask me the channels seem like another cheap addition in the end it saves them money on the other hand the channels may join the batch of several other wasted channels who knows the channels may do well in this market but those who watched National Geographic even though it could interest them they'll still pick National Geographic over any other channel. Starsat could be going through difficult times kind of like MultiChoice and its recent additions now that Lifetime and History remains it could have increased their expenses so channels are bound to be lost and affordable replacements might take quality channels position.

The Disney/FOX Channels Go Dark On Starsat

Statement from The Walt Disney Company Africa:
“We can confirm that our channels (Fox, Fox Life, ESPN, ESPN 2, Fox Portuguese, National Geographic, Nat Geo Wild, National Geographic Portuguese, Baby TV, Voyage, National Geographic French, Nat Geo Wild French) are currently not being provided to StarSat. This follows ongoing commercial issues with StarSat.

Despite Disney’s negotiations in good faith and significant efforts to find a resolution, The Walt Disney Company Africa has had to suspend the feeds of all our channels to StarSat at this time.

We continue to work to find a positive resolution but in the meantime our channels will remain available on various other platforms across the continent. Viewers are encouraged to visit https://www.foxafrica.com/, https://www.natgeotv.com/za, and https://www.espn.com/ to find tune-in information.”

Statement from StarSat:
1. Yes these channels - FOX, FOX LIFE, NGC and NGW  were offline from 1st October 2019

2. The current Fox channel discontinuation is an extra ordinary occurrence as proliferation of 5G signal testing stations (in SA), due to rapid expansion of 5G network has created unavoidable interference with signal feeds of aforementioned channels.

The 5G signal testing is specifically interfering with c-band satellite frequency which has in turn compromised viewer experience in terms of sound and picture quality.

This has caused unacceptably high levels of viewer dissatisfaction amongst loyal StarSat subscribers. We are unfortunately left with little or no choice but to indefinitely suspend the effected channels.

3. Channel replacement measures aimed at revitalising and refreshing our content offer are currently underway.

The Disney/FOX Channels Go Dark On Starsat

Statement from The Walt Disney Company Africa:
“We can confirm that our channels (Fox, Fox Life, ESPN, ESPN 2, Fox Portuguese, National Geographic, Nat Geo Wild, National Geographic Portuguese, Baby TV, Voyage, National Geographic French, Nat Geo Wild French) are currently not being provided to StarSat. This follows ongoing commercial issues with StarSat.

Despite Disney’s negotiations in good faith and significant efforts to find a resolution, The Walt Disney Company Africa has had to suspend the feeds of all our channels to StarSat at this time.

We continue to work to find a positive resolution but in the meantime our channels will remain available on various other platforms across the continent. Viewers are encouraged to visit https://www.foxafrica.com/, https://www.natgeotv.com/za, and https://www.espn.com/ to find tune-in information.”

Statement from StarSat:
1. Yes these channels - FOX, FOX LIFE, NGC and NGW  were offline from 1st October 2019

2. The current Fox channel discontinuation is an extra ordinary occurrence as proliferation of 5G signal testing stations (in SA), due to rapid expansion of 5G network has created unavoidable interference with signal feeds of aforementioned channels.

The 5G signal testing is specifically interfering with c-band satellite frequency which has in turn compromised viewer experience in terms of sound and picture quality.

This has caused unacceptably high levels of viewer dissatisfaction amongst loyal StarSat subscribers. We are unfortunately left with little or no choice but to indefinitely suspend the effected channels.

3. Channel replacement measures aimed at revitalising and refreshing our content offer are currently underway.

The Disney/FOX Channels Go Dark On Starsat

Statement from The Walt Disney Company Africa:
“We can confirm that our channels (Fox, Fox Life, ESPN, ESPN 2, Fox Portuguese, National Geographic, Nat Geo Wild, National Geographic Portuguese, Baby TV, Voyage, National Geographic French, Nat Geo Wild French) are currently not being provided to StarSat. This follows ongoing commercial issues with StarSat.

Despite Disney’s negotiations in good faith and significant efforts to find a resolution, The Walt Disney Company Africa has had to suspend the feeds of all our channels to StarSat at this time.

We continue to work to find a positive resolution but in the meantime our channels will remain available on various other platforms across the continent. Viewers are encouraged to visit https://www.foxafrica.com/, https://www.natgeotv.com/za, and https://www.espn.com/ to find tune-in information.”

Statement from StarSat:
1. Yes these channels - FOX, FOX LIFE, NGC and NGW  were offline from 1st October 2019

2. The current Fox channel discontinuation is an extra ordinary occurrence as proliferation of 5G signal testing stations (in SA), due to rapid expansion of 5G network has created unavoidable interference with signal feeds of aforementioned channels.

The 5G signal testing is specifically interfering with c-band satellite frequency which has in turn compromised viewer experience in terms of sound and picture quality.

This has caused unacceptably high levels of viewer dissatisfaction amongst loyal StarSat subscribers. We are unfortunately left with little or no choice but to indefinitely suspend the effected channels.

3. Channel replacement measures aimed at revitalising and refreshing our content offer are currently underway.

Entertainment Upgraded!

From Monday, 1 April, eExtra viewers will enjoy a revamped schedule with their favourite eBella telenovela titles moving to the channel to create a weekday guilty pleasure afternoon block. This will be followed by a serving of some court drama, the Afrikaans and viewer favourite ‘KuierTyd’, and other riveting local and international series.

This merger of the two channels will give our audiences the best of both with a 24-hour entertainment offering. “eBella built a loyal following over the last year and gave us the opportunity to showcase and test new content that celebrates the lives of women around the world,” says MD of e.tv channels Marlon Davids. “Following the success of eBella, we are excited to incorporate our viewers’ most-loved telenovelas and series into our main schedule on eExtra. This move gives us the opportunity to provide eExtra viewers with a bigger and bolder content offering throughout the day, with all their favourite shows in one place.”

The daytime lineup will see fan favourites like Fatmagul, The Girl Named Feriha, Caribbean Flower and Naagin, to name a few, featured alongside many of the best telenovelas from Latin America, India and Turkey.

The channel will bring audiences more courtroom reality with a new series, Hot Bench. ‘KuierTyd’ will also be extended to include Die Wiel Draai and another hit local Afrikaans drama series, Vallei Van Sluiers on Sundays.

eExtra will still feature award-winning local dramas, like Umlilo and Traffic, international series’, comedies and more. eExtra is available on Openview (channel 105) and DStv (channel 195).

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Why is eBella ending?
We are moving your favourite eBella shows to eExtra to provide you with a bigger and bolder content offering throughout the day. You can now enjoy all your favourite shows in one place. eExtra will now air 24 hours a day with a revamped schedule.

What is happening to all my favourite eBella shows?
Many of your favourite eBella telenovelas and drama series will continue on eExtra. These include Fatmagul, The Girl Named Feriha, Caribbean Flower and Naagin. eExtra will also continue to bring you the best telenovelas from around the world as well m as other quality local and international content.

What about KuierTyd?
eExtra’s popular Afrikaans slot ‘KuierTyd’ is staying put. In addition to brand new episodes of Bittersoet (weekdays at 7pm) and Nuusdag Om 8 (daily at 8pm), you can also enjoy Die Wiel Draai (every Wednesday to Friday at 8.30pm), and Vallei Van Sluiers (Sundays at 7pm). Nuusdag Perspektief now airs every Sunday evening at 8.30pm, delving deeper into the week’s top news stories and current affairs.

What else is new on eExtra?
eExtra boasts some of the best local and international television series. The channel offers back-to-back telenovelas. A brand new Afrikaans-dubbed Turkish drama will launch in the next few months and fans of Gebroke Harte will see their favourite characters return for a second season which starts in July. 

Court Hour has also been improved and now features 3 court shows back to back.

Where can I view the eExtra TV guide?
You view the eExtra TV guide on your Openview or DStv decoder, or by visiting www.etv.co.za

Where can I watch eExtra?
eExtra is available on DStv channel 195 or Openview channel 105.

eExtra Switches Back To 24/7 Channel When eBella Stops Airing At The End Of March

eExtra the South African digital satellite
television channel supplied by eMedia Investments on their Openview platform as well as MultiChoice's DStv and On Digital Media (ODM) Starsat switches back to 24 hour channel from April.

The reason for the switch has to do with the shutdown of the unsuccessful female based channel eBella. Several if not most of eBella shows will be transmitted on eExtra in April as a "weekday guilty pleasure afternoon block" on the channel.

eExtra hasn't been schedule wise for sometime now which has built a major impact on the brand. You'll find some new content on this channel get the late night treatment similar to what Turner U.S. and International does with Cartoon Network and Boomerang where 2-3 shows get attention while others which are on an indefinite hiatus for some reason get the death treatment by being put weekday mornings or nights with no repeats most of the time and if there was they'd put it at a time less viewers would be tuned in so Turner's channels are way worse than eExtra. This treatment is unacceptable as it forces some viewers to distance themselves from the channel and the minute something good comes on you miss it and for those who want to see the show can't since the channel is not schedule wise.

eExtra is basically described as a premium entertainment channel in HD including sitcoms, drama series, reality, telenovelas, court shows, lifestyle and movies after the shutdown of eBella you can say weekdays eExtra became a telenovela channel with a dash of court shows, drama series and news as indicated:

Weekdays

06:00  The Girl Named Feriha
06:40  Qubool Hai
07:30  Madhubala: Ek Ishq Ek Junoon
07:50  Meri Aashiqui Tum Se Hi
08:15  Piyaa Albela
09:00  Reina De Corazones
09:45  Caribbean Flower
10:30  Judge Judy
10:55  Divorce Court
11:15  The Girl Named Feriha
12:05  Bittersoet
12:50  Rhythm City
13:15  Scandal
13:40  Ashes To Ashes
14:05  Broken Vows
14:30  Madhubala: Ek Ishq Ek Junoon
14:55  Meri Aashiqui Tum Se Hi
15:20  Piyaa Albela
16:10  Caribbean Flower
17:00  Hot Bench
17:25  Divorce Court
17:50  Paternity Court
18:10  Chicago P.D
19:00  Bittersoet
20:00  Nuusdag Om 8
20:30  Die Wiel Draai
21:30  The Americans
22:15  Imbewu: The Seed
22:40  Tierra De Reyes
23:30  Chicago P.D
00:15  Reina De Corazones
01:00  Caribbean Flower
01:45  La Impostora
02:40  Marido en Alquiler
03:30  Matter Of Respect
04:05  Piyaa Albela
05:00  Parenthood
05:40  Paternity Court

Results from the weekday schedule
71,05% Soapies (50% from eBella, 21,05%=13.16% from eExtra+7,89% from e.tv)
15,79% Court shows
10,53% International drama series
2,63% News

Then you have your weekend lineup the channel has more variety but no movies. When eExtra first launched the weekends always had variety so its no different even after they switch it back to 24 hours. Two things you should pay attention to the telenovelas dominate the weekend to a lesser degree Saturday is filled with Indian telenovelas and 1 turkish telenovela but you'll hardly notice any difference as usual as there's reality shows, news and sitcoms while Sunday is consists mostly of programs catered for Afrikaans speakers plus news, telenovelas and local series like Traffic! and Umlilo as indicated:

Saturday
00:15  Reina De Corazones
01:00  Caribbean Flower
01:45  La Impostora
02:40  Marido en Alquiler
03:15  Matter Of Respect
04:05  Naagin
05:00  Paternity Court
05:20  Divorce Court
05:40  Judge Judy
06:00  Piyaa Albela (Marathon)
09:00  Naagin
09:55  Nirmala's Kitchen
10:20  Madhubala: Ek Ishq Ek Junoon (Marathon)
12:25  Meri Aashiqui Tum Se Hi (Marathon)
14:30  American Grit
15:20  The Almost Impossible Game Show
16:00  #Hastags
17:00  Raising Hope
17:30  Instant Mom
18:00  Are We There Yet?
18:30  America's Funniest Home Videos
19:00  Groen
19:30  Vaalharts
20:00  Nuusdag Om 8
20:30  Die Wiel Draai (Marathon)
22:45  The Girl Named Feriha (Marathon)

Sunday
00:15  The Girl Named Feriha (Marathon continues from Saturday)
02:30  Hot Bench (Marathon)
04:10  Girlfriends Guide To Divorce
05:00  Divorce Court
05:20  LOL
05:40  Nirmala's Kitchen
06:00  Grassroots
06:30  Life By Design
07:00  Caribbean Flower (Marathon)
10:45  #Hashtags
11:30  Sonder Jou Soetkys
11:55  The Wild (Marathon)
14:00  LOL
14:20  Nisboere
14:50  Bittersoet (Marathon)
18:35  The Great Penguin Rescue
19:00  Vallei Van Sluiers
20:00  Nuusdag Om 8
20:30  Nuusdag Perspektief
21:00  Umlilo
21:50  Traffic
22:15  Black Money Love (Premiere)
23:05  Tierra De Reyes (Marathon)