New Channel Alert (Rumoured): Media24 To Launch Second Afrikaans Channel On DStv

Media24 is Africa's largest publisher, printer, and distributor of magazines and related products, as well its largest newspaper publisher. In charge of online publications like News24 and newspapers like Daily Sun and City Press.

Media24 partnership with MultiChoice first began in 2015 with the launch of VIA an Afrikaans lifestyle channel and it wasn't long till the concept would expand to the rest of Africa with the launch of HONEY.

 

Now Media24 became not only Africa's largest publishing company but entertainment brand for its selection of original programmes – from food shows to true-life dramas and nail-biting reality shows.

After nearly a decade, MultiChoice awarded VIA with a second TV channel. Just like Moja 9.9., the brand will repeat content consumers on the family package would have come across on VIA such as Huisgenoot, Minki, Koskuns Met Lientjie Wilhelmela and Musiekpaniek.

Details on the rollout haven't been confirmed if I had to guess it will either rollout by the end of the month or sometime in May. Just like Moja 9.9., it will likely be made available to Access customers on channel 151 as VIA to fliekNET/Woordfees occupy 147-150.

 

This news comes after eMedia Investments also rolls out an Afrikaans channel to the Openview platform, ePlesier home to Turkish dramas seen on eMedia's linear and OTT platforms.

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New Series Alert: Family Secrets Makes Their Free-To-Air Debut On SABC 3

Earlier in the year, it was reported that SABC 2 will rebroadcast Zee TV's Saloni and East Meets West in the coming future after a decade of no Bollywood. It seems like SABC 3 will be joining the Bollywood spectacle.

Apparently, the public broadcaster picked up rights to the 2017 drama Rishton Ka Chakravyuh (Labrinth Of Relationships) which is also known on Star Life as Family Secrets.

 

Based on the story of Lai Bhaari, Family Secrets revolves around a mother, authoritative royal businesswoman Satrupa, and her 17-year-old free-spirited, confident daughter Anami. The show depicts the life of a royal, industrialist family that resides in Laal Mahal, the house of conspiracies.

The show stars Narayani Shastri, Sangita Ghosh, Mahima Makwana, Ankit Siwach and Ajay Chaudhary.

 

Family Secrets is scheduled to air every weekday at 19:00 on SABC 3 from Monday 18 April. In other developments, Zee One is scheduled to air the African adaptation of the Indian drama, Mehek.

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eToonz Now Caters To Teens With This Slate Of Live-Action Series

After almost 2 years, eMedia Investments gives eToonz some fresh content once seen as another Rewind in their portfolio burst out of that bubble with a dedicated live-action slot accompanying the already available Power Rangers.

The slate of programming that was recently added to the channel includes the preschool series In The Night Garden from CBeebies. Accompanied by some other kids programming mostly Canadian by the brands WildBrainTV and CBBC.

Here's some details on the new content for the channel:

Preschool

- In The Night Garden - the programme features a large cast of colourful characters with unusual names who live in a magical forest scattered with large daisies and brightly coloured pompom flowers. The characters mostly speak short and repetitive phrases and each one has their own special song and dance. The garden is a sunny and colourful environment and the music is jaunty and music box-like.

 

Kids

- Backstage - The trials and tribulations of the students at Keaton School of the Arts, which includes dancers, singers, musicians, and artists. The characters frequently break the fourth wall, talking to the viewers in so-called "confessionals.
- Hank Zipzer: The World's Greatest Underachiever - Hank Zipzer is a young boy who is dyslexic. He lives on the Upper West Side of Manhattan with his family, and attends P.S. 87 at Amsterdam Avenue and W 78th Street. His best friends are Frankie Townsend and Ashley Wong.
- Make It Savvy - A kids magazine series out of Canada hosted by Annie LeBlanc from the Bratayley YouTube channel and have segments on music, fashion, and DIY, as well as lifestyle elements, and celebrity profiles and interviews.
 

- Bajillionaires - Is a hilarious live-action kids’ comedy that follows the exploits of a group of fledgling entrepreneurs running a tech start-up out of one of their parents’ garages. Led by 12-year-old CEO Max Graham, the neighbourhood pals are constantly brainstorming ideas for the world’s next great invention, and while most of their creations are hilariously bad, totally weird and wildly impractical, the kids are always learning something new, becoming better friends and getting one step closer to their BIG idea.
- Make It Pop: Summer Splash - Follows Sun Hi, Jodi, and Corki around Mackendrick Prep, a boarding school, who form a high school K-pop-inspired band called XO-IQ, with the help of Caleb, and find music, mischief, love, and friendship.

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World War II Is Back On History Africa As The Channel Explores One Of The Most Political Crisis In History - May 2022 Highlights

WORLD WAR II
Sundays from 20:15
Every Sunday in May and June the HISTORY Channel Africa will deep dive into World War II. Involving most of the world’s countries, World War II was one of the great watersheds of 20th-century geopolitical history. From uncovering Secret Nazi Expeditions to the Story of the Spitfire and in-depth features on Dunkirk and the D-Day landings, the HISTORY Channel Africa investigates every angle of the biggest and deadliest war in history.

Brand New & Exclusive
SECRET NAZI EXPEDITION
1 May
Sundays 20h15
During their rise to power and throughout World War II, Adolf Hitler and SS leader Heinrich Himmler led a secret team of elite scholars and archaeologists known as the “Ahnenerbe”. It was their covert mission to rewrite history and establish the superiority of the Aryan race, a belief that dominated Nazi ideology.

 

Brand New & Exclusive
STRANGEST THINGS S1
20 May
Fridays 19h25
Strangest Things explores the stories surrounding some of the most unusual and interesting objects ever found or created. From the most distant man-made object in the universe to a 10,000-year-old shaman’s headdress, each show will feature three riveting objects and their stories. Using the latest scientific research, photographs, declassified files and expert test mony – combined with a unique visual style – we explore the strangest objects on Earth to reveal the true stories of what they really are.

Brand New & Exclusive
THE ENGINEERING THAT BUILT THE WORLD
24 May
Tuesdays 20h15
As the latest instillation of the HISTORY Channel’s popular “That Built” franchise, The Engineering that Built the World sheds light on the iconic structures and engineering feats that have shaped and defi ned our world. From the Golden Gate Bridge, to the Panama Canal, Transcontinental Railroad, Statue of Liberty and beyond, this series tells the stories of the brilliant visionaries behind the most epic builds of the past two centuries. Up against insurmountable challenges, these are the unknown tales of rivalries, egos, backdoor politics and the brilliant engineering innovations that made the future possible.

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Rumoured: eMedia Investments Reportedly Entered Talks With StarSat

eMedia Investments is taking MultiChoice to the Competition Tribunal in regard to their agreement for the 4 channels currently seen on DStv. The brand demands for more money and obviously MultiChoice refused which led to the axing of their channels from the brand by June.

In an interview, eMedia Investments was asked about their future on pay-tv or whether their channels will remain exclusive on the Openview platform and they had this to say:

Our strategy is that our channels are free-to-air channels and should be available wherever people access channels.

Not long ago, several consumers approached StarSat on the possibility of adding more e.tv channels to the platform and responded with a cryptic message:

We are working on it.

 

Although that doesn't say much, it does bring joy to the dismissal portfolio.

In 2014, the pay-tv platform negotiated with eMedia Investments of the once available eAfrica+ alongside eMovies+ (now eMovies) and eKasi+ (now eExtra) before plans fell through and a year later they were only fortunate to get eKasi+ onboard.

Fast forward to 2022, the pay-tv platform lost a lot of premium channels such as FOX, Fine Living, The Smithsonian Channel, Discovery Family, SA Music, St Eyethu and several other channels with failure to source out alternative channels.

eMedia Investments bundle of channels could fill up the gap for some of these areas.

 

eToonz could make up for the loss of DreamWorks which is now on DStv, although no movie channels were harmed on the platform eMovies could bolster the movie offering either way I don't see the sense in having that on StarSat unlike eReality which could make up for the portion of Discovery channels removed on the platform.

In other regions, it appears that the brand is just sourcing some regional stations to make up for the losses and the idea of StarSat bundling more channels from the platform doesn't seem far fetched at this point.

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