MultiChoice Zambia Dumps Camnet TV From The DStv And GOtv Platform

MultiChoice Zambia is set to claim it's first victim by the end of January as a channel termination noticed has been sent to various consumers watching Camnet TV on channel 274. 

Camnet TV was launched back in 2017 alongside Prime TV on the platform and served as Christian based channel and was one of the few local channels on the platform with such genre. The channel was founded by Mrs. Pastor Victoria Chiluba who is married to the former president of Zambia, Frederick Chiluba.

Although the channel didn't have much controversy the founder embroiled in a scandal where she sought help from Hakainde Hichilema (Zambia's current president) in an attempt to save Camnet TV. And this was what prompted Camnet TV to lose credibility and also have a controversial history.

MultiChoice Zambia in a statement has attributed low viewership and possibly other strategic considerations regarding channel content and profitability. Camnet TV would basically be the third religious station to have gone off air on the platform and the second within this month.

A year ago, Emmanuel TV decided to exit various platforms across Africa after the channel's founder T.B. Joshua was involved in a sex trafficking/cult scandal. Prior to this, the founder was embroiled in numerous other scandals with one notable figure deeming him "the son of a devil".

Before that was ITV Networks, this was the only Islamic channel to have been distributed by MultiChoice in South Africa and also the only non-troublesome channel on the list. If anything, the channel's demise was part of an ongoing review between companies attempt to enhance viewer's offering. 

Could 1Max Be Over And Out On DStv As Canal+ Edges Closer To MultiChoice?

Based on the Showmax streaming service, 1Max serves as a promotional window to various originals and international content from the streaming service alongside reruns from M-Net. Despite Comcast holding a 30% stake in Showmax, 1Max is handled entirely by MultiChoice/M-Net who serve as a majority shareholder.

Last year, MultiChoice and M-Net decided to do away with Me and 1Magic with their deaths that were partially exaggerated as the offering merged to form 1Max. This received very little buzz from MultiChoice even for a repeats channel they would have been some type of promotion but not in this case with 1Max.

Since then, speculation had been going around that 1Max could be done and dusted once or if Canal+ managed to complete it's acquisition of MultiChoice. Firstly, the French broadcaster doesn't like this idea of Showmax posing as a threat to DStv and has even hinted at the two serving as contenders.

What I think this could mean is that Showmax gets spun off amongst shareholders within MultiChoice. Rumours had been making the round that MultiChoice had considered dividing DStv and Showmax and this grew further to even suggest a potential sale in their assets particularly DStv.

If this does happen to be the case, it would put 1Max in a very precarious position as this is the lifeline for Compact+. Most other channels like Comedy Central, BBC Brit and Universal TV are already viewable on much lower bouquets and with its cancellation there wouldn't be much value on the package.

MSNBC Will Not Undergo A Name Change Once It Is Spun Off From Comcast

 MSNBC will retain its name after it is spun off from Comcast along with other cable assets.

Mark Lazarus, who is leading the new company, told network staffers of the plans at a meeting today to announce the departure of Rashida Jones as the network’s president and the naming of Rebecca Kutler as interim leader, according to a network source.

“I know there was some discussion with the MSNBC name, so you can take that off of your worry list on things,” Lazarus said at the meeting.

Kutler also will be hiring a head of newsgathering and head of talent, Lazarus said. Throughout its history, MSNBC has drawn on correspondents and anchors from sister network NBC News, which will remain part of Comcast.

Lazarus said, “The only thing I’ll say is the worst thing any leader can do is change something that’s working just because they can. So, if this is working, then there’s no reason to change it.”

The spinoff, announced in November, is expected to take about a year to complete. It also will include USA Network, CNBC, Oxygen, E!, SYFY and Golf Channel.

MSNBC launched in 1996 as a venture between NBC News and Microsoft. It had a heavy emphasis on the then-emerging internet, but its primetime eventually evolved into a progressive alternative to right-leaning Fox News.

What Was Me And 1Magic Replaced With On Canal+'s DStv English Plus Add-On?

Last year, MultiChoice decided to axe Me from the DStv Compact and Family packages as it merged with the premium channel 1Magic to form 1Max. The channel would comprise of shows viewed on the revamped Showmax streaming service which forms as part of a joint venture with NBCUniversal.

After Canal+ acquired a stake in MultiChoice and this was before the hostile takeover which is expected to conclude within the first half of 2025. The French broadcaster was able to license content from M-Net with DStv offering Africa Magic Showcase, Discovery and Telemundo through their platforms as an Add-On in French markets.

M-Net City and VUZU formed part of this lineup before merging to form Me alongside 1Magic. As seen with DStv's lower bouquets, these channels were ousted from Canal+ platforms and wasn't replaced by 1Max despite distributing 1Magic.

But rather Canal+ opted to distribute Universal TV in place of Me with E! taking over the spot formerly reserved by 1Magic. These channels are owned by NBCUniversal and as we mentioned sometime ago select content from Me and 1Magic can be seen on these brands including The Real Housewives, S.W.A.T. and NCIS: Los Angeles.

Of course, M-Net didn't think that the decision to remove Me will have rippling affects as Mzansi Magic exempts itself local shows like Recipe For Love And Murder and Legacy. Expanding on Me, it was also home to international franchises like The Amazing Race, Survivor and MasterChef now consumers have to turn to SABC or Showmax.

Despite the rippling affects of linear TV overseas there's still a lot of dependency for such platforms in other countries as Canal+ seeks to grow its operations with the acquisition of MultiChoice following its split from Vivendi. But in some way, the actions depicted by MultiChoice had been seen through rival broadcasters.

eMedia Investments' at one point had e.tv distributed a majority of programming from NBCUniversal, Disney and CBS Studios before folding that under Openview. SABC made a similar move with SABC 3 which proved to be controversial it even led viewers and content distributors to flee the channel.

How The MultiChoice Acquisition Might Worsen Things For DStv?

DStv serves as the largest entertainment entertainment platform in Africa by MultiChoice despite seeing a loss in consumers in recent years with its parent company undergoing a takeover by Canal+. It offers a variety of local and international content from Disney, Warner Bros. Discovery and BBC alongside the best in sports.

As reported in 2024, Canal+ is in the process of completing it's acquisition of MultiChoice with South African regulators. Should this deal move ahead, it would give the French broadcaster access to almost 50 million households with close to 30 million residing in Africa which would help them take on giants like Netflix.

Prior to the MultiChoice takeover, Canal+ already offered services in Europe through SPI International, Viaplay, Platforma Canal+ and the M7 Group with V+, VIU and Canal+ Myanmar residing in Asia. With Canal+ facing constraints in France viewed these markets as potential outlets for growth. 

Similar to MultiChoice, most of these properties listed served as start ups for Canal+ before being placed under French control. That was because Canal+ didn't have the expertise or necessary resources to compete in these markets so the other way would be through corporate buyouts or partnerships.

In Francophone Africa, a market in which Canal+ remains the dominant player very similar to DStv has very little to be desired. When it comes to France and Europe, Canal+ has plenty to compare with DStv but in Africa that is all on MultiChoice if Canal+ is dominant in one area it would be local content.

A tie-up with MultiChoice would make Canal+ a  dominant player and give them the scale as seen in France and parts of Europe. Canal+ has licensed numerous channels from DStv such as M-Net Movies, Africa Magic Epic and Zee World for these consumers in french markets and this transaction could lead to more content sharing.

As for DStv, there could be cuts when Disney+ was I  pre-development stages Disney didn't have much content for adults and the FOX acquisition gave them that. But things didn't improve for FOX as the Disney takeover led to numerous FOX channels across the world and studios to close.

On the DStv side, some outlets had stressed about that 20% cap put on foreigners even if Canal+ acquired MultiChoice it's voting rights in SA are minimal. Majority of MultiChoice's services come from South Africa and some fear that part of these services could as well be reduced if not closed even with a third party managing it's licenses.

If you look at Canada, a majority of MultiChoice's content providers are handled by local businesses Corus Entertainment manages Paramount Global with Bell Media handling Comcast. Channels that have still been exempted from this lineup in the region include MTV, Comedy Central, BET, Nicktoons, DreamWorks Channel and E!.

Corus through the Disney Channel has been importing Canadian shows while the global part is still Disney. This could be the case for DStv, where Canal+ the employee or as the stake in South Africa handles various licensing agreements while it's partner handles the financial aspect and whoever handles the finances has more power.

 

This is what happened when StarTimes acquired a 20% stake in TopTV (now StarSat) even though On Digital Media held the 80%, StarTimes decided who they should do business with. On Digital Media in this regard would turn down some businesses that wound up being licensed to other parts of Africa.

Another hurdle awaiting DStv with this takeover is consolidation, when Discovery acquired Warner it was very similar to Disney they were only cuts nothing new or beneficial came out of this deal. Even with their Max streaming service, what they did was use it as a promotional window for Discovery+.

This is where DStv could be heading, Canal+ curated local content in Francophone Africa and with this takeover they'll probably try to give that more exposure. MultiChoice had already done that with Africa Magic and SABC News so it only seems fair if the French implement similar mechanisms.

Who knows maybe this takeover will see M-Net curate and license more content from StudioCanal as this was outlined in the company's prospectus.