Could eMedia Investments Look Into Removing Their Content From DStv Catch-Up As Seen With The SABC?

During the week, MultiChoice was forced to SABC 1's Skeem Saam, Uzalo and Generations: The Legacy alongside SABC 2's Muvhango and 7de Laan also known as The Big Five. It forms part of a decision by the public broadcaster which has left consumers to rely on SABC+.

Not long ago, the public broadcaster announced that the streamer had failed to reach their expectations after only gaining 150000 out of 2 million households. With that came the decision to limit the platforms to view catch-up on these show's respective channels.

It could help lure more consumers to SABC+ but the only reason their streaming endeavours hadn't reached its peak would be lack of marketing. Another having to do with the fact that nothing newsworthy has been brought to consumers attention.

SABC+ comes off as a catch-up service and a platform to view past content by the public broadcaster while as local broadcasters like eMedia Investments and MultiChoice invest in original productions and other exclusive content for their streaming service.

,

Something that wouldn't come as a shocker to some and this is something that somewhat been observed is if eMedia Investments were to undergo a similar route at some point. They had scrapped their content from VIU and kept them on DStv Catch-up as they believe in accessibility.

Since last year, eMedia Investments had been embroiled in a carriage dispute with MultiChoice over their 4 Openview channels which had remained onboard DStv for the time being due to court ruling.

They've tried several times to negotiate a new agreement but MultiChoice won't budge. Although SABC's decision to remove these programs wouldn't favour them viewership/money wise, you can clearly see where they're getting at I mean they want to be less dependant.

Similar with Disney+, they want to put more emphasis on their platforms and that's something that has yet to be seen by eMedia Investments and might as well be something they look into as more consumers flee to their platforms.

eLocal: Could eMedia Investments Revive The eKasi Concept Onto A New Channel?

eKasi+ (now eExtra) was a general entertainment channel operated by eMedia Investments that distributed various archived alongside first run local productions like eKasi: Our Stories, Backstage, I Love South Africa and Tropika Island Of Treasure.

Part of the reason this brand never worked out had to with viability as Openview wasn't profitable at the time for eMedia Investments. Another would be the lack of new content as eKasi+ local offering was very repetitive to a point where eMedia had to build an international portfolio.

Now serving as eExtra, it had seen a lot of success with consumers particularly for their local infused international dramas which was spun off onto a standalone network ePlesier and folded under a tile for the eVOD streaming service.

In the last years, eMedia Investments had been building their original portfolio to better take on brands like SABC and MultiChoice which had seen success with those endeavours for decades. Before all of this content was consolidated on e.tv now the brand serves as a catch-up platform for part of this offering.

Similar to ePlesier and SABC Encore, eMedia Investments has managed to build as much local content for their brands that the idea of them possibly converting this into a standalone service where you can relive some of these moments wouldn't seem far fetched.

Before they had problems sustaining the lineup but as seen in 2021, e.tv has become a large chunk of SABC that they gave brands like eReality and eXposed the chance to expand on what could have been e.tv should they have kept the offering and that included Botched, Catfish, The Walking Dead and House Of Cards.

On top of eReality running a 2 hour block for local reality shows like Pay Back The Money, Date My Family and Beef with other programming from eExtra such as SterStatus and Die Kontrak could help sustain this brand and not burn it to the ground like eKasi+.

Development Alert: Nickelodeon Orders Brand-New Animated Preschool Series Super Duper Bunny League, eMedia Investments Replaces eXposed With eSeries On Openview

Nick Jr. will also be saving the world from crime

Nickelodeon has ordered Super Duper Bunny League (working title), a brand-new adventure-comedy preschool series based on the kids' comic book series by cartoonist Jamie Smart. Featuring 2D animation, the series (26 episodes) centers on a diverse group of bunny friends who must battle danger as they defend their city and the world from their archnemesis. Super Duper Bunny League is slated to launch 2024 in the U.S. and continue to roll out on Nick Jr. channels internationally.

"Super Duper Bunny League brings to life the colorful world that Jamie created with quirky imaginative characters and engaging stories filled with zany adventures and loads of fun," said Eryk Casemiro, Executive Vice President, Nickelodeon Animation, Global Series Content. "We are excited for the opportunity to take the comic books to the next level with a preschool animated series that combines big superhero action with silly cartoony comedy in a uniquely Nickelodeon way."

The Super Duper Bunny League is here to battle danger in all its forms as they defend Important City and the world from their arch-nemesis (and accidental creator), the inept Dr. Fuzzleglove, and a ridiculous rogues' gallery of cartoony villains. Whether battling sweet-toothed space pirates, sizzling lava monsters, giant metal monkeys or hot dog-hungry dinosaurs, the Bunnies must combine their new superpowers to defend truth, justice, and especially free time to snack and chill.

Super Duper Bunny League is produced by Nickelodeon Animation in Burbank, Calif. Robert Scull and Jonny Belt serve as executive producers and Jamie Smart as Consultant on the series. Production for Nickelodeon is overseen by Eryk Casemiro, Executive Vice President, Nickelodeon Animation, Global Series Content. Marielle Kaar serves as Nickelodeon's Executive in Charge of Production for the series.

eSeries is an official brand on Openview

The eXposed channel (109 on Openview) has been rebranded to eSERIES and now features a variety of international series across all genres. “From nostalgic and new sitcoms filled with spontaneous laughter bringing families together, drama series with warm, captivatingly relatable themes, to intense, darkly dramatic plot twists, and the thrill of the chase through the gritty arcs of crime. 

Viewers can expect an unmatched, dramatic rollercoaster ride with international shows across genres” The newly branded eSERIES channel has an easy and consistent daily programme flow with international comedy (Practical Jokers, Neighbourhood Wars), nostalgic sitcoms from yesteryear (The Nanny, The Goldbergs), procedural dramas (Blue Bloods, Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Suits, House of Cards) dark dramas (Walking Dead), and romance/” Girls Night” (The Bold Type, Why Women Kill).

Also available is some lifestyle shows like MasterChef and Love Island. Korean lovers can see programmes like Watcher and Doom at Your Service on weekends (with some weekday daytime repeats). There is so much to watch, and the channel has something which appeals to everyone, from early evening to late night. The beauty of the channel’s structure is that series episodes run daily, so you don’t have to wait a week to see the next episode of the series you’re following – this is a remarkable change in viewing.

Recap To The Month: SABC Delays The Expansion Of Further New Channels On DTT

During the year, SABC was gearing up for the rollout of a second news channel only known as SABC eKhaya. After failing to rollout the news channel, the public broadcaster had a soft launch for the brand on their DTT platform featuring content already viewed on their linear platforms and archived material.

Similar to SABC Sport, the plan was to feature a "fresh offering" once the channel managed to garner traction and the public broadcaster was looking to negotiate with other broadcasters in the hopes that they could distribute the channel onto their platforms.

But as seen in recent months, consumers had been affected by load shedding that some went as far as cutting back on their DStv subscription and other expenses as the outcome of these blackouts had left people jobless and led some entrepreneurs to lose their businesses.

The SABC blames Eskom on why their revenue continues to drop in recent months and also the reduction of analogue frequencies and streamers like Netflix for why SABC+ is struggling. It was also stated that the public broadcaster had to delay the rollout of new channels due to the blackouts impact on viewership.

For almost two years, consumers had been awaiting on an update from SABC on the status of two yet-to-be-launched channels on Openview alongside SABC Education's expansion to pay-tv outlets. Since SABC hasn't been able to meet up with any of its deadlines and with these outlets rolling out new channels, consumers will just lose interest.

Unlike SABC, Multichoice and eMedia Investments continue to expand their content and portfolio of linear channels. Despite the decrease in consumption, there's still consumers viewing these brands and rolling out those "new channels" could have helped reduce their financial constraints as opposed to pausing/scrapping shows like The Estate and uBettina Wethu.

What Has Glow TV Been Up To Following Their Departure From Linear Television?

Glow TV was a general entertainment channel operated by the Nismedia Group. It promoted Hindi culture with a variety of made for TV content like This Is Love and Little Bheem from India alongside content based in South Africa like The Get Real Talk Show With Denver Naicker.

Earlier in the year, Glow TV ended transmission on the Openview platform after a heated dispute with eMedia Investments for the distribution of the brand. It was also removed from StarSat after negotiation between the two didn't pan out - therefore ending it's run on TV.

As for an OTT platform, Nismedia was looking to continue Glow TV in some capacity and one of those could have been a digital service. Although they didn't want to dive further into specifics, their main concern overall was on their future with linear television.

Openview partly contributed to Glow TV's success that it was sort of hard on Nismedia to imagine a future without their viewers and sort of hard to build something like eVOD and Showmax from scratch.

Netflix continues to remain dominant in the African market alongside YouTube leading MultiChoice to sell part of their stake in Showmax to NBCUniversal. eMedia Investments on the other had to sought through partnerships to build the streamer's local portfolio.

Both platforms are confined to a paywall that select shows would be freely accessible as a means to lure potential consumers particularly those tailored to platforms like e.tv and SABC as a source of entertainment.

As for what Glow TV has been up in the last months, it's hard to tell as there's been a lot of inactivity or at least with the Glow brand indefinitely as Nismedia had been using the channel's social accounts to promote their other properties, Laudium Sun. 

The Laudium Sun is a community newspaper serving it's readers in Laudium & surrounds since 1984. The newspaper is delivered door-to-door in residential areas, whereby mainly people of Indian origin live. The paper is a household name amongst the community.

If one had to guess, it's possible Glow TV had been folded under Laudium Sun and this is probably their only means of survival. Although, it doesn't come with a linear platform or TV series. They do engage directly with consumers through live events and other activities.

News Shorts: eMedia Investments Allocates Two Radio Stations Jacaranda FM And Smile FM To Openview, Disney Channel To Launch Third Local Production Across Africa Wandi & Kabz And SoundCity Scoops Up Several Nollywood Films From Trybe TV

eMedia Investments is expanding the audio lineup on Openview

Jacaranda FM is a South African radio station, broadcasting in English and Afrikaans, with a footprint that covers Gauteng, Limpopo, Mpumalanga and the North West Province. The station's format is mainstream with programming constructed around a playlist of hit music from the 1980s, 1990s and now.

It is available on channel 602

Smile 90.4 FM is a bilingual (English and Afrikaans) adult contemporary radio station, broadcasting to the greater Cape Town Metropole and surrounding areas, including Paarl, Stellenbosch and Somerset West. Smile 90.4FM’s listeners are affluent, family orientated, enjoy a healthy lifestyle and care for their community at large.

It is available on channel 609.

Disney Channel to allocate more local content in the coming month

During the month, Disney Channel unveiled two local productions Kiff and Kizazi Moto: Generation Fire (streaming on Disney+ prior to its debut) with Disney Junior geared up to rollout their first local production Kiya And Kimoja Heroes in the coming month.

Also joining Kiya And Kimoja Heroes in September will be a 5 minute educational segment on the Disney Channel titled Wandi & Kabz.

Neither Disney or MultiChoice were able to provide further details about the segment but from what we've gathered it's likely a historical or biographical segment highlighting selected individuals with the first episode revolved on political activist Charlotte Maxeke.

SoundCity scoops up content from Trybe TV

SoundCity was launched in 2009 by Consolidated Media Associates as a Pan-African urban music and lifestyle channel. Beginning as a TV show promoting local musical acts, the brand was added to MultiChoice's DStv in 55 markets across Africa.

Consolidated Media Associates reaches 100 million households with brands like Spice TV for consumers across Africa alongside West African brands like Trybe TV, Televista, VillageSquare TV, OnTV Nigeria, OnMax, Urban96 Radio Network, Access 24 and Televise TV.

During the week, SoundCity registered several projects from Trybe TV including Top 5 Stars, Director Profile, One On One, Upclose and Personal, Behind The Scene, Morili, Heroes and Long Game. It's currently unknown why some of Trybe TV's titles is being listed under the channel.

Maybe it's CMA's way of trying to make their content accessible in other countries. Another could be that MultiChoice is looking to cut down on more channels in the last months several local channels like Novela Magic, ROK GH and Maisha Magic Movies (SA only) were axed.

News Shorts: School Is In Session With Woza Matrics Now On Mzansi Wethu, kykNET & Kie To Debut 5 Namibian Based Films And Glow TV Rumoured Relaunch On The Openview Platform Debunked

Mzansi Wethu enters the classroom

WOZA Matrics is a programme designed to help matrics catch up on their studies and to assist Matrics nationwide with learning materials and study tools via classes broadcast on TV channels, online platforms and radio.

Some of the platforms include DBE TV (on Openview) from 08:00 until 10:00 and 13:00 to 15:00 everyday. The programme will also be available on the DStv Catch Up function on DSTV Now.

As seen this past week, MultiChoice extended the reach of the program to Mzansi Wethu. For a while now, consumers on the platform had to sought out free-to-view platforms with a similar offering on Mindset's Liberty Learn.

,

Namibia is taking over kykNET next month

NBC and MultiChoice partnered up to source out various short films within the region also known as Project Mukorob giving Nambians a platform to share their unique stories and to contribute to the cultural richness of the country.

All films will air on NBC from December 2023 to May 2025.

Five films will be telecast through KykNET and Kie on Sundays at 20:00, starting with "The Funeral" on September 3rd, followed by "Bokwagter" on September 10th, "The Goal" on September 17th, "Wish for Death" on September 24th, and Instant Love on October 1st.

Prime TV IS NOT COMING TO OPENVIEW

During the week, it was reported that eMedia Investments would be adding/relaunch another Bollywood centred brand to the Openview platform, Prime TV (aka Glow TV). This was after a user had spotted the Wikipedia page for Glow TV now known as Prime TV for some apparent reason.

Neither Glow TV or Nismedia were available to comment on the latest development but eMedia Investments debunked news of another Bollywood channel and proclaiming it #FakeNews. Although the news was proven false, viewers are eagerly awaiting the possible return of the channel.

Earlier in the year, Glow TV was phased out from linear platforms and Nismedia was looking to take legal action against eMedia Investments - still no word on how that's going or if it's still on the cards. Since then selected content like The Get Real Talk Show With Denver Naicker had migrated to People's Weather.

As for the news of Prime TV, the idea was probably conceived after consumers on Openview had learnt that MultiChoice would be allocating a third Bollywood channel Zee Zonke to low tiered bouquets. Similar to eExtra's Kuiertyd, the content is dubbed in local languages.

TOLDJA! e.tv's 4 Channels Were Meant To Go Dark On DStv By August But Were Extended, Might To Go Dark By The End Of 2023 If Not Early 2024

Last month, eMedia Investments' 4 Openview channels on the DStv platform were meant to go dark as the team advised consumers that eExtra, eToonz, eMovies and eMovies Extra would be booted and would remain exclusive to the Openview platform with eExtra on StarSat.

Fast forward to the present, these channels are still onboard the DStv platform and through an enquiry it was revealed that eMedia Investments had got another months extension (possibly the rest of 2023) by the Competition Tribunal - you'd think they'd let this matter rest.

And also it was mentioned that eMedia Investments had tried to get an extension on DStv but MultiChoice refused which led them to run through the Competition Tribunal for help once again.

Amidst this extension, MultiChoice was looking to launch further channels like the Zulu dubbed Bollywood channel Zee Zonke later this month (possible replacement to the Afrikaans offering on eExtra) but was delayed to September likely due to this matter.

Last year, MultiChoice had mentioned that they were battling with transponder constraints which partly led to the cancellation of eMedia's offering while the other party claimed they had plenty of space for more channels. But it's possible MultiChoice's case was accurate as they closed several channels in the previous financial year.

With this extension you kind of wonder if the upcoming offering would make it to DStv or likely get scrapped as seen with Media24's Via duplicate for Access consumers. Aside from e.tv, other channels whose future are in question include National Geographic and Disney Channel.

As outlined through my research, Disney Channel (and if possible Disney Junior) might be the next channels to exit the platform as further content will be folded under another streaming platform if not Showmax as Disney is looking to streamline the business.

Analysis: Could eMedia Investments Or StarTimes Revive ITV Choice And tvN?

ITV Choice was a British based entertainment channel operated by ITV Studios that offered a mixture of reality, lifestyle and drama series. Some of the content included on the channel were Coronation Street, Emmerdale, The Jonathan Ross Show and Doc Martin.

The channel was phased out from the DStv platform by June 2020 and with no outlet to continue watching the channel consumers had to rely on BritBox for further content or view the little remains of ITV (Tipping Point and The Chase) on BBC and M-Net.

tvN was added to the pay-tv platform as a pop-up channel featuring various content from South Korea such as The K-2, Tails Of The Nine Tailed, Another Miss Oh, Cheese In The Trap and Tunnel. Despite being a popular addition, MultiChoice went against the idea of a full-time channel.

Since then, the Korean entertainment channel had been looking to continue on another platform and surveyed several fans even got a petition in the hopes to return on DStv but since then there had been no updates with consumers fleeing to Netflix and YouTube to view the offering.

Although, tvN is not viewable on DStv some of its programming such as Ice Adonis and Doom At Your Service had been scooped up by eMedia Investments to build the primetime offering for both their linear and digital platforms. It kind of led some to wonder if the red brand could eventually source out tvN.

With tvN not regarded as a cheapo addition, the channel would likely fall under eMedia Investments' pay tier, Ultraview. Thanks to the existing Asian offering seen on Openview, consumers would be able to familiarise themselves with the channel's programming.

I mean the idea of eMedia Investments pursing tvN or something similar for Openview consumers wouldn't seem far fetched .Prior to Zee One even Star Life's induction, eMedia Investments had broadcast several Bollywood dramas through eExtra with some help from Glow TV.

Unlike tvN, ITV Choice would likely have to come in a form taken over by Zee One or The Home Channel+ - free-to-view. eMedia Investments hasn't added any incentives to this offering and the only option BBC UKTV was ripped away from them by MultiChoice's DStv.

This ITV managed brand would make up for the loss of BBC UKTV and also be it's first official competitor seeing as they both cater to low income households unlike BBC Brit which is mid tier. This channel would have to reintroduce shows some of which aren't on DStv to new consumers.

News Shorts: Nickelodeon Africa And International Enter The Splat Zone, East Coast Radio Has Been Allocated On The Openview Platform And eMedia Investments Scraps Cryptic Detail About Their 4 Channels On DStv

Nickelodeon braces for another rebrand

Nickelodeon today (Tuesday 1st August 2023) launched Nickelodeon's 2023 rebrand, which brings back the iconic Nickelodeon Splat, in Africa alongside Australia & New Zealand, Asia and the Central Eastern Europe. Still no word on Canada and Latin America but the UK and MENA had migrated earlier.

To create the new identity, Nickelodeon partnered with six U.S. and international agencies. The company asked the agencies to come back with a spot that used the new brand work and represents Nick’s energy and identity through the lens of its most notable IP—SpongeBob, Paw Patrol, Blue’s Clues, Baby Shark, Loud House and Monster High—making sure there is a moment of the iconic Nickelodeon slime.

East Coast Radio reaches more households

During their financial year presentation, eMedia Investments unveiled plans to rollout a few more channels before the end of the current financial year. Prior to that, eMedia Investments disconnected the services of LM Radio and TransAfrica Radio on the Openview platform.

7 months into 2023, eMedia Investments unveiled a new addition to the Openview platform, East Coast Radio.

Serving as one of the largest regional stations in South Africa, East Coast Radio (ECR) is a KwaZulu-Natal commercial radio station with an

audience of approximately 5 million. It is operated by Kalgiso Media who also manage brands like Jacaranda FM and JUTA Publishing.

Presenters featured on East Coast Radio include Daren Maule, Ker Miller, Sky Shabalala, Carol Ofori, Vick Naidoo, Stacey Norman, J Sbu, Tee Xaba, Sam Cele, Mike V, Buhle Hlatshwayo, Andy James and Nick Taithen.

e.tv's 4 channels are set to go dark on DStv...supposedly

After announcing that the channel's would go dark on DStv by the end of July, eMedia Investments has scrubbed further details about the cancellation across their platforms which brings to question the viability on DStv.

From what is known at the moment, these channels are currently on limbo on the pay-tv platform with eMedia Investments that had since then promoted several shows particularly on eExtra's Kuiertyd without any mention of them also residing on the DStv platform.

Could it be possible that eMedia Investments had got the dates wrong or perhaps announced their demise a tad early or could a new agreement might be put in place for some if not all the channels seen within the Openview platform. 

Could Power Up Be A Permanent Channel On The Openview Platform?

During the year, eMedia Investments allocated Power Up as a catch-up service for most of the local content seen across their linear platforms. Following Eskom's unbearable power cuts it has led majority of households to miss out on primetime shows and even catch-up on repeats.

Power Up was one way to manage those hours lost within the week to load shedding and if anything Eskom's actions had prompted other businesses such as MultiChoice to rollout a similar offering for consumers.

From what was mentioned initially about Power Up was that it would serve as a pop-up channel which might simmer down depending on how quick Eskom was able to get their affairs in order. They promised 24 months but that's hard to believe considering the stages of these blackouts.

eMedia Investments hasn't shared much details about the viewership for Power Up but MultiChoice deemed their pop-up channel a success. We kind of wondered whether eMedia or MultiChoice would probably look into carrying something like Power Up or SWITCH'D ON full-time.

MultiChoice has been very strict when it comes distributing repeats as they've removed several channels over the years like SABC Encore, Sundance TV and Novela Magic which catered to the majority and had brands like Magic Showcase, BBC UKTV and CineMagic allocated to Easyview.

But eMedia Investments on the other hand doesn't seem strict about any of this. They allocated ePlesier despite the existence of e.tv, eExtra and eVOD and heck there was one point where Zee One and eExtra clashed luckily that managed to resolve itself for now.

Now it kind of boils down to Power Up considering there's no plans to add anything worthwhile to the channel. Is it possible eMedia Investments will perhaps move further repeats such as Nikiwe and Smokes And Mirrors on e.tv to Power Up as seen with eExtra's Kuiertyd this past week.

Om Elke Draai airs on Sunday at 10:40 followed by Hart Van Goud at 20:40 and Roekeloos Dade is on Saturdays at 11:00 for those wondering where to catch-up it's on Power Up.

The department will be turning off analogue signals across the country in the coming year and the only way one would need to view SABC much less e.tv is through a smart TV or platforms like DStv and Openview.

Considering these consumers would make up majority of SABC and e.tv's viewership the brands could whatever they want at this point as consumers would have the necessary options at their fingertips. Take for instance, Muvhango's omnibus or daily repeat at 09:00 on SABC 2 they could just move it to SABC Education.

Worst case scenario would be ripping the show away from consumers but if you could have a brand that lightens the load and gives that other brand the opportunity to expand their lineup it's a sort of a win win for the company as they'd get more viewers onboard while that audience would get more options aside from repeats.

eExtra's recent schedule adjustment leads one to wonder whether MultiChoice and M-Net will do something similar with Mzansi Magic and kykNET at some point or rip it away as there's more to view on DStv and limited options on Openview.

Recap To Last Year: How MultiChoice Went About Phasing Out The eBranded Channels?

During the week, it was reported by my sources that eToonz alongside eExtra, eMovies and eMovies Extra would stop airing on DStv by the end of July. Since then, eExtra had been promoting several content without any mention of DStv which confirms everyone's suspicion.

These channels were reinstated in 2022 due to pending investigation - MultiChoice never intended to relaunch these channels as others had hoped. So the only way you can watch the final episodes of your favourite Kuiertyd shows would be to tuning in on e.tv or getting an Openview.

For those who still reside on DStv even after the termination need to note the following:

• DreamWorks was added as a replacement to eToonz to Compact consumers featuring various content already seen by the former brand: All Hail King Julien, Dragons: Race To The Edge, Boss Baby: Back In Business and Home: The Adventures Of Tip And Oh.

• Not having much alternatives to kiddies entertainment, MultiChoice extended the reach of PBS Kids to Easyview consumers. Access and Family consumers got a lot of kids channels e.g. Cartoon Network, Disney Junior and JimJam so they get nothing.

• Movie Room was added to all DStv consumers or better yet to the packages that offered eMovies and eMovies Extra. So basically 1 movie channel was given to Compact consumers while as KIX was added to Family and Access consumers giving them 2 channels.

• Each DStv package got 2 channels to replace the 4 TV channels while Easyview only got 1 channel.

• New channels added to the platform during the year include CineMagic, Magic Showcase, BBC UKTV, NHK World Japan, Moonbug and Hilaal TV so in a way you could say MultiChoice found a way to distract consumers from their absence particularly with Easyview consumers.

Kuiertyd Updates: SterStatus Makes It's Freemium Debut On e.tv, Doodsondes Returns For A Fifth And Sixth Season On eVOD, eExtra's Kuiertyd Being Ripped Away From DStv Platform + More

During the week, eMedia Investments had been creating a lot of buzz some good (and others not so great) and I just thought of wanting you refresh your memory to see what is happening across their platforms. 

e.tv

Since 2022, eMedia Investments had restructured the channel into the leading destination for local entertainment similar to Mzansi Magic and SABC 1 with most of their international content being reverted to eReality and eXposed with "premium movies on the eMovies channels.

As advised only 1 project is currently in development:

• Perfect Picture, a celebrity filtered reality show formerly seen on SABC 1 had been scooped up by eMedia Investments for a second season.

eExtra

Last month, Roekeloos Dade alongside uBettina Wethu exchanged timeslots meaning the Turkish drama would air 30 minutes early while the local series would air an hour later. It only made sense for eExtra to undergo similar changes with their consumers. 

• SterStatus, a fashion show formerly seen on Media24's Afrikaans lifestyle channel becomes the second project to have gotten revived by eMedia Investments following Die Kontrak. 

• From 31 July, Elif will be airing 18:00 followed by Om Elke Draai at 19:00 then Hart Van Goud at 20:00 and Die Put at 21:00. eMedia Investments hadn't provided the full 24 hour schedule should they do we'll gladly provide it but as of now Kuiertyd will look like this

18:00 Elif

19:00 On Elke Draai

20:00 Hart Van Goud.

21:00 Die Put

• The channel rolls out three new international telenovelas (two of which are currently streaming on eVOD): Winter Son, Chrysalis and Ramo. All shows but Elif ends next month as it continues to be Kuiertyd's longest running series.

• From July 4, Die Vreemdeling the first ever Turkish series to be made available on e.tv will broadcast as a double bill at 16:00.

eVOD

* The final two seasons of Doodsondes will launch exclusively on eVOD. Even Die Put has reached its final rounds on the streaming service both of which are slated for eExtra's Kuiertyd.

Other 

During the week, it was learnt by sources that e.tv's 4 channels would be exciting MultiChoice's DStv and after a few hours we managed to recieve word that eToonz, eExtra, eMovies and eMovies Extra would in fact end its run on the pay-tv platform by the end of July.

As mentioned, further content can be viewed on e.tv and several pay-tv channels on DStv. Of course with e.tv, this comes at a limited basis with some content be it drama related or cinema based taking longer to be viewed on e.tv than on eExtra or eMovies some never seen on the brand.

Could eToonz, eExtra, eMovies And eMovies Extra Be The Next Channels To Exit MultiChoice's DStv?

Last year, MultiChoice renewed their partnership with eMedia Investments for eNCA which meant eNuus on kykNET could live on a couple of years. Unfortunately, this new agreement didn't include eToonz, eExtra, eMovies and eMovies Extra therefore ending it's run on DStv.

At the time, it was learnt that MultiChoice would adding more channels during that financial period including Movie Room and DreamWorks and also extending the reach of existing channels KIX and PBS Kids. They even got kykNET to rollout it's international telenovela slate.

But that's where things get interesting because around the time all this happened. The courts made their ruling and it was advised that MultiChoice retain these channels following pending investigation which created an overflow of content amongst their portfolio.

It was stated by eMedia Investments that they'd love to see their channels remain on DStv despite the tensions the pay-tv company have with Openview. MultiChoice at the opted to move further and refresh their lineup which led to the cancellation of Tellytrack, ITV Networks, Novela Magic and MTV Hits.

Over to the cancellations, it was stated that the channels would remain on DStv for another 6 months but when 6 months had passed. eMedia Investments only responded to say that eToonz, eExtra, eMovies and eMovies Extra would remain on DStv until further notice.

In an recent enquiry by fans, eMedia Investments' team responded to say that these channels would only be on Openview. Although a date hasn't been provided I presume these channels would be going dark by from August as it would mark 1 year since it was reinstated.

And also eExtra is undergoing timeslot changes around same time, if my hunch is correct it means that consumers would be missing out on the final episodes of Hart Van Goud, Om Elke Draai and Die Put as the latter conclude next month on eExtra with only 2/3 available on e.tv.

As for the other three, the content is spread across DStv for eMovies and eMovies Extra there's Movie Room and TNT, and eToonz with DreamWorks or better yet Nickelodeon. Not that this content isn't on value but taking the platform to account you kind of see these three wouldn't make the cut.

eExtra at some point was guilty as charged but now you can view some fragments of these brands through e.tv and across several DStv channels.

Alongside e.tv channels, other brands whose futures are in question include factual and wildlife brands National Geographic and National Geographic Wild and children's brands Disney Channel and Disney Junior as The Walt Disney Company transitions to a streaming only module moving further content to Disney+.

News Shorts: Shocker (NOT REALLY) Mindset Network Ends It's Run As A Linear Channel After 18 Years For Liberty Learn, Telemundo Africa To Hit A New Low With Another Rebroadcast Of Decisions And TCM Closes Down In The UK By The End Of The Month

Mindset bites the dust

During the year, Mindset Network had been going through a lot of changes/reconstruction with most of their pages and websites either being abandoned or deleted. This was the first place to theorize the demise of the curriculum based channel.

Mindset Network had been doing a lot of downsizing in the last months so much so that the channel didn't offer interactive but prerecorded learning. Then there was the outdated programme guide which labelled everything under channel name and description.

This partnership with Liberty Learn was likely one way to save themselves from scrutiny with them being an NGO. Liberty would aid them financially while Mindset would distribute the resources to consumers.

Liberty Learn is available on DStv, StarSat and Openview.

Teleyawnder is back for more Decisions

During the week, production was paused on new content for the channel following Cameroon and Uganda anti-gay laws which prohibit the distribution of homosexual content resulting consumers to miss out on the rest of fourth season to medical drama, Nurses.

Since then the channel had featured reruns to numerous shows including For Love And Justice, On The Other Side Of The Wall, Queen Of The South and Almost Yours with Lord Of The Skies serving as the longer formats.

Diving further to reruns, Telemundo has offering the anthology series Decisions numerous timeslots over the years and with the series slated to end next month for Operation Pacific. We finally recieved word about the future of the series.

Initially, the series was slated to replace Lord Of The Skies but that was when Nurses was on but now nothing is known in regards to the replacement.

TCM is getting dismantled

It’s the end of an era for the British television landscape: Turner Classic Movies (TCM) UK, widely known as TCM Movies and a cornerstone for film enthusiasts, is preparing for its final act.

This dedicated channel, which has showcased the rich filmographies of Turner Entertainment and Warner Bros., is set to close its curtains on July 6, 2023, marking a poignant farewell for UK’s classic movie lovers.

This sombre news comes amidst a backdrop of global uncertainty for TCM. Across the Atlantic, the future of the American TCM channel hangs in the balance following recent layoffs announced by Warner Bros. Discovery.

As the UK prepares to say goodbye to its beloved classic film channel, the struggle to preserve its American counterpart underscores the ongoing challenges and importance of maintaining the legacy of classic cinema worldwide.

Recap To Last Year: eXposed Becomes The Premier Destination For The Best International Series

eXposed is a general entertainment channel operated by eMedia Investments that broadcasts a mixture of reality shows, drama series and documentaries. Some of the content available on the channel include The Walking Dead, Flower Of Evil and Empire.

The channel was added as a replacement to eReality and over the past year a supplement to the former international content viewed on e.tv. I mean the channel kind of resembles the main channel in a lot of aspects they offer the best of eReality and eExtra.

Prior to those two channels rollout on Openview, most of their content was seen on e.tv at the time and as these channels became a household name that only left an empty void on the main channel with a portion of their channel bombarded with their repeats.

In the later parts of 2010, e.tv was the Bop TV of our generation featuring shows like Family Feud, Fear Factor, NCIS: Los Angeles and The Resident. Fast forward to 2023, the latter can only be viewed through Openview with selected content distributed by M-Net on DStv.

Most of which isn't on a platform like DStv Access and Easyview. SABC 3 (stylised as S3) is another hub to relive those days with shows like The Good Doctor, Killing Eve and El Capo. Sure these are different programs but it does make a good successor.

If I had to sum up the issue with international on e.tv, MultiChoice and SABC have been in the local game since inception and eMedia Investments is trying to build on that so instead of erasing e.tv's entire existence we have channels like eXposed keeping the magic alive.

Recap To The Decade: 10 TV Channels You Probably Forgot Existed On Openview

Openview is a free-to-air platform operated by eMedia Investments that also manage brands such as e.tv, eReality and eExtra part of which are ranked the top 10 channels. For several years, they've been to be a worthy foe to pay-tv serving affordable entertainment.

It wasn't always like this initially the platform was more of an Easyview type platform and if we remember the DStv bouquet it was one of MultiChoice's crappiest products to exist and Openview at the time was basically that with the exception of eMovies and eToonz.

Now we look at 10 forgotten channels once seen on Openview.

1. English Club TV

English Club TV sets out to be one of the most least crappiest products on this list. If anything the channel was very promising as it featured documentaries, films, cartoons and music video all of which are illustrated for those who study English.

At the time this channel was around, eMedia Investments didn't have that much consumers. In some way, English Club TV was a victim of unfortunate circumstance which contributed to the cancellation.

2. Inspiration TV

Inspiration TV is a Christian themed channel operated by Inspiration Ministries that is home to the likes of Charles Stanley, TD Jakes and Joel Osteen. It was meant to form the initial offering of Openview when it launched in October 2013 but didn't unfortunately.

eMedia Investments had tried numerous times to get the channel onboard but due to some technologies those plans were halted.

3. BiCars

Bi-Cars TV was a reality street motorsport
lifestyle channel similar to Ignition TV on DStv. It showcased motorsport news, fashion, celebrity riders and real-life stories of street Moto-sport lifestyle, entertainment and music.

Some of the content featured on Bi-Cars TV included Mzansi Celebrities Bikers, Bi-Car Make Over, Battle Of Crews , BC League, Championships Of Speed and Sound, and Torque Talk.

Similar to most of the channels on the list, a vast majority weren't tuning in to the Ignition duplicate.

4. United Christian Broadcasting Network (UCBN)

United Christian Broadcasting Network (UCB Network TV) is a Christian based channel providing religious content. UCBN programming include shows such as Men of Honour, Women In Me, Pastor's Corner, Africa Talent Show, Nuggets of Wealth and Leadership, U Kids.

The channel was terminated due to low viewership.

5. Ekurhuleni TV

Ekurhuleni TV is a community TV station carrying local news, music, educational, health and religious programming.

The channel was terminated due to low viewership.

6. Relevant TV

Founded and run by Joshua McCauley, Relevant TV was intended to be a non-denominational Christian lifestyle TV channel that will look at the spiritual needs of Christians from all walks of life. The main target market of the channel is young adults, although it will cater for other groups as well.

The channel was removed due to unforeseen circumstances and without prior notice by eMedia Investments.

7. Alex TV (LXTV)

Alex TV, stylised as lx tv, was a community based channel with Lucky Siwela as chief executive officer (CEO) and co-founder, revolves around covering and mirroring the life and issues of the vibrant, yet impoverished South African township and "suburb" of Alexandra.

The channel was yanked off Openview after its broadcasting licence had expired. Since then, rival company MultiChoice was able to fill the void with GauTV which caters to Sandton all the way to the Bekkersdal township.

8. ASTV (now MYtv)

ASTV was a lifestyle channel in which eMedia Investments had minority ownership broadcast a mix of actuality, outdoor, youth and teen content as well as Afrikaans music videos. Some of the content available on the channel included Vaskap, Eksieperfeksie, Kos Is Oppie Tafel, Ons Gesels Met... and Klankbaan.

Similar to OnseTV on StarSat, the channel wasn't watched by majority of the viewers and hasn't gained much traction as seen with kykNET's offering on DStv. Forming part of Openview's initial offering it went dark after 3 years of service (and 12 on StarSat).

9. Wild TV Africa

Wild TV Africa, developed by Dewald Visser, brought viewers outdoor and adventure programming focusing on camping, mountain-biking, fishing, 4X4 trails, scuba diving, conservation, mountain climbing, hunting, sport shooting, skydiving and big wave surfing.

Similar to most brands on the list, the channel was axed due to low viewership. Of course, similar content can be found on People's Weather and on DStv, WildEarth.

10. Shembe TV

Shembe Unyazi TV will show viewers programming around the African religion founded by Prophet Isaiah Mloyiswa Shembe, known as Bombela, in 1910 and which has 8 million followers in Southern Africa.

Basically a rival to the Nigerian based Emmanuel TV on DStv, it's currently unknown as to why the channel was removed but it was believed to be low viewership with the low rated channel currently seen on StarSat.

What Happened To Trace Sport Stars?

Trace Sports Stars is a lifestyle channel that celebrated the life of sports through factual entertainment, reality shows and gossip similar to E! operated by NBCUniversal. The channel supplies various originals such as Up Close, Bad Boys In Sports and Football Stars.

The channel was added in 2011/2 on Sky UK and MultiChoice's DStv across Africa as Trace Sports. Two years later, it went dark in the UK which coincides with the rebrand to Trace Sports Stars as they didn't offer live sports and the name didn't coincide with the offering.

When looking at a brand name like Trace Sports, one would assume they'd play actual sports like English Premier League, La Liga and WWE and although the content is focused solely on that topic. It just didn't really stick with some consumers.

In general, Trace Sports Stars was a wreck not because the channel couldn't get fresh content as it did possess potential but likely due to the fact that this type of content promoted by the channel isn't watched by vast majority as seen with the actual sporting events.

That in mind is what led to it's demise on MultiChoice's DStv with Trace Africa coming in place and at that time it was made available on rivals On Digital Media and StarTimes' StarSat and eMedia Investments' Openview platform.

This was Openview's first attempt at anything sports with StarSat offering a platform to reject channels or affordable entertainment. But of course, both brands ended scrapping the channel before 2018 for similar reasons as MultiChoice - viewership.

As of 2023, Trace Sports Stars is not viewable anywhere in Africa but that doesn't mean the channel is completely lost as it can be obtained on Binge Networks (USA), Sky (Mexico), Viaccess-Orca (France) and NTV Plus (Russia).

To be frank, Trace Sports Stars remains sustainable if anything it's not performing as well as it's musical family Trace Urban, Trace Gospel, Trace Toca, Trace Mziki and Trace Naija all of which are viewable on MultiChoice's DStv in selected territories.

Recap To The Year: OUTtv Relaunches On eMedia Investments' Openview Platform And Also Streaming On Showmax

OUTtv is a gay oriented entertainment channel based in Canada which specialises in made for TV films and series including Finding Prince Charming, RuPaul Drag Race, The Villberg Chronicles, Dr. Jackie: Unlicensed Psychotherapist and Haus Haus.

During the year, it formed part of eMedia Investments' initial offering alongside FUSE to their unbundled pay-tv service Ultraview which is similar to MultiChoice's DStv AddMovies which too comes with a limited number of alternatives at a high price.

As mentioned, OUTtv is a member of the LGBTQ something not supported by some religious groups. On top of that, such acts are prohibited in various African territories. So when you look at it you can kind of see why MultiChoice went against the channel.

Prior to its rollout on Openview, MultiChoice added OUTtv as a pop-up channel back in 2018 and were involved in a nudity scandal but that's not what stopped it from becoming permanent. Perhaps the issue at the time had to deal with preferences.

MultiChoice comes with a range of channels and consumers pay for selected while opting to tolerate the least necessary. OUTtv would have probably been that brand to drive away consumers or had smear campaigns launched against them and DStv as seen in Uganda.

Hence the reason for Showmax and Ultraview, as one comes with less restrictions while the other gives consumers particularly religious households the option of not viewing content from this particular brand.

eReality On DStv: Here's Everything Briefly Wants You To Know About The eFamily Member Channel

Briefly News is a South African digital media and news platform that was founded in 2014. It is one of South Africa’s largest news and entertainment websites and one of the top-earning brands on Facebook in Africa. It is also partner to Genesis Media Emerging Markets.

Genesis Media Emerging Markets, a digital media holding operating in South Africa, Nigeria, Kenya, Ghana and worldwide. Other GMEM news projects include Legit.ng (Nigeria), TUKO.co.ke (Kenya), YEN.com.gh (Ghana) and Sportsbrief.com (Worldwide).

In 2018, eMedia Investments launched a free-to-air reality channel on the Openview platform, eReality. It currently ranks as the most popular reality channel in the market featuring local and international series from e.tv, NBC, M-Net, Oxygen, BBC and MTV.

Prior to its rollout on Openview, rumours swirled around that eMedia Investments would be adding eReality as the 6th channel to MultiChoice's DStv joining the now defunct eBella alongside eExtra, eMovies, eMovies Extra and eToonz.

Of course, not much was known about its potential rollout it was believed to be replacing eBella as news of a possible rollout of the reality channel coincided with the termination of the channel which introduced viewers to shows like Qubool Hai and Fatmagul.

Last year, an author of Briefly published a story about eReality but this time as a channel for DStv. Of course, not much is known about what led to the mix up or which channel the author was referring as they listed it under the Compact bouquet but not Openview.

eMedia Investments gave away broadcasting rights to eNCA to MultiChoice for another 5 years preventing Openview consumers from ever viewing the channel with SABC News currently viewable on SABC's DTT and streaming service, SABC+.

Briefly now viewing eReality as a DStv channel, would it be a bad idea to rip the channel away from Openview consumers as the switch to DStv could help give brands like TLC and MTV a ran for their money with their 90 Day Fiance and Teen Moms.

Honestly, it's better off on Openview as there's not much alternatives to the content and as seen with eMedia's 4 other channels on DStv. It would have likely joined the group of channels awaiting their departure from the pay-tv operator for carrying "DStv Repeats".

Source: Briefly