Insidus

Sunday, September 6, 2020

As Expected, Disney XD And FOX Life Stop Airing On DStv By The End Of September

This news came from another African market and not South Africa but I'm certain that it includes every other market considering the state of both channels.

At the beginning of September, Disney Channel started airing shows from Disney XD so they kind of gave it away at that point while FOX Life is replacing the remaining telenovelas with repeats of past reality shows.

MultiChoice will be adding TLNovelas and from what I remember FOX Life supplied content from there so that should make a fine replacement for the FOX Life channel while Disney XD doesn't need replacing since Disney Channel will now supply content from that channel.

Disney XD launched in the early 2010s on DStv and kind of outshined Disney Channel in a way since most children prefer animation as opposed to sitcoms. I wasn't a fan of XD because it made it easier for Disney Channel to cancel programs. Now that XD will be off the market Disney Channel will have to work extra hard to please viewers.

FOX Life launched in 2016 in the place of FOX Crime and FX. The channel started out as a general entertainment channel carrying all the realistic programs with FOX handling the niche, crime and paranormal stuff then FOX Life dedicated themselves to unfinished Turkish shows and boring reality shows. This channel is definitely getting canned from StarSat/StarTimes I'm confident about that now.

MultiChoice in that mysterious market had this to say to the individual:
MultiChoice Group (MCG) has confirmed that as of September 30th at 23:59 CAT, Disney XD (channel 304) and FOX Life (channel 126) will stop airing on the DStv platform. The change is a result of ongoing review of channels by content providers and platform partners.

Update:

As per your query, I wanted to close the loop with this update:

We can now confirm that the Disney XD and FoxLife channels will close at midnight on Wednesday 30 September.

As the television landscape and viewer consumption evolves, we continue to develop and review our products and services - including with our platform partners - to ensure we are offering the best possible experience for consumers.

Whilst Disney XD will no longer air, some of the channels most popular and iconic animated and live action series will be brought to Disney Channel, expanding the channel’s programming offer to viewers. Whilst FoxLife will no longer air, we are excited to continue to entertain DStv viewers with world-class series and programming from Fox Channel.

We are excited to continue to bring our viewers popular and iconic programming from our extensive media networks channels.

You may quote “Disney Africa spokesperson”, should you require.

Update: 5 New Channels Coming To DStv

MultiChoice had a showcase were these 5 channels were unveiled which can explain their staff's cluelessness over its existence. More details on the channels have surfaced, please note that the availability of these channels are not definite as they're likely to change.

tlnovelas
Channel: 133
Broadcast dates: 14 September 2020 to August 2021
Package: DStv Family, Compact, Compact+ and Premium
English-dubbed Mexican telenovelas, not made by Telemundo.

ZooMoo
Channel: 314
Package: DStv Family, Compact, Compact+ and Premium
Broadcast dates: 1 November 2020 to 31 March 2021
Canadian interactive pre-school channel featuring a mix of live action combined with animation and puppets. Aimed at kids aged 2-7.

KIX
Channel: 114
Package: Compact, Compact+ and Premium
Broadcast dates: Permanent channel, starting on 1 October.
Asian action movies. KIX features martial arts, action and thriller movies from the East and West, all presented in English.

Timeless Drama Channel
Channel: 123
Package: DStv Family, Compact, Compact+ and Premium
Broadcast dates: 1 November 2020 to 31 March 2021
Turkish telenovelas and costume dramas dubbed into English.

TVN
Channel: 134
Package: DStv Family, Compact, Compact+ and Premium
Broadcast dates: From 1 November to 31 March
2021
South Korean dramas, also presented in English.

IMPORTANT: These 4 channels can be permanent channels depending on the impact it has with viewers. If they don't close on their specified date that means it's permanent.

Summary:
- All five will be available on Premium, Compact Plus and Compact.
- DStv Family customers get 4 channels
- DStv Access customers and others might have none of these channels, it's still unconfirmed at this point for all except KIX. If MultiChoice does advertise it for these packages as mentioned above you might get another outcome. If you visit their website Da Vinci was announced for Family customers with WWE being Compact when in fact it was Da Vinci on Access and WWE on Family.

The Next Channel Which Might Get Booted On DStv Is EVA

EVA owned by AMC International, is the home of the very best contemporary telenovelas from Latin America and around the world, starring the "newest" and most brilliant actresses and actors form Latin America tv. A potent mix of love, jealousy and betrayal. The channel launched 5 years ago on DStv channel 141 with shows from Azteca TV, Venevision and Caracol Television.

In 2017, MultiChoice Africa (not South Africa) decided to add a second EVA channel (EVA+) for those without EVA kind of like what ViacomCBS had with the two BET channels on DStv. At the time that plus channel had 90% repeats.

AMC International is seemingly neglecting the EVA channels for starters the main channel mostly has double bill of Bold for fresh entertainment other than that it's repeats while EVA+ is a just a catch-up channel. If EVA is still breathing it's more likely for Bold and the Beautiful.

MultiChoice had plenty of channels in EVA's position like Sony Channel and Sony MAX that channel was still relevant for The Amazing Race then there was AMC for Fear The Walking Dead with its successor (Sundance TV) adding some documentaries.

If a company wants to guarantee themselves longevity they should be milking off on a variety of products instead of one e.g. E! with The Kardashians, Zee TV with KumKum Bhagya and CNN with Trump.

Discovery is pulling through despite the changes they had over the years. They manage about 9 channels in South Africa and only 3 are used for repeats. Then there's Nicktoons which was a reruns channel for past animation on Nickelodeon until ViacomCBS decided to give it some exclusive programming it may offer more than the main channel thanks to acquisitions and a block but Nickelodeon is still dominating.

In short if you're going have a +1 channel make sure you have enough programs in your vault like at least 5 years worth of programming and EVA was around since 2015 and only got a second channel after two years. If you're going to expand after a shorter period you must have achieved a lot within that period what did EVA achieve after two years in general.

MultiChoice is adding 2 telenovela channels and 1 Korean channel what are the chances people pay attention to EVA once it's available. The likelihood is that they'll lure viewers away from EVA and a portion from Telemundo. Even FOX Life is hanging around these three channels the likelihood is EVA and FOX Life get canned from the platform with these three new channels keeping viewers occupied.

Friday, September 4, 2020

Fashion One Stops Airing On DStv And StarTimes In General

Fashion One (DStv 178) that has been running outdated and old content on a loop, abruptly stopped broadcasting without warning a few days ago. MultiChoice that tried to engage the Fashion One owners has removed Fashion One with immediate effect from the DStv line-up. Even StarSat and StarTimes scrapped the Fashion channels as well but does anyone really care.

At the moment, DStv subscribers are still trying to digest the changes made with M-Net Movies and SuperSport while StarTimes subscribers act as if nothing happened on top of StarTimes scrapping all the channels from SPI International.

A dead source suggested that a replacement was being considered for DStv and StarTimes but it doesn't look like neither platform care about replacing it.

MultiChoice redirects viewers to Spice TV, TLC and E! while StarTimes remains unresponsive as usual.

Disney XD Africa Could Be Shutting Down Sooner Then We Thought And Here's Why

Ever since the launch of Disney+, several markets have been shutting down a couple of Disney Channels due to that platforms existence.

According to The Information, Disney would be investing more towards Disney+ on top of that take a couple of programs from other channels and move them to that streaming platform leaving less content for the current channels.

So the whole shutting of Disney channels was being discussed since 2019 internationally and the pandemic might have moved up the inevitable.

Since Disney+ rollout a lot of markets have been throwing Disney XD in the gutter while others like the UK canned all the whole batch of Disney Channels with India replacing it with Marvel HQ.

Marvel HQ, the home to all things Marvel made its way to India. It looked like this channel was set to be the future of Disney XD. Disney India stated that Marvel HQ will rollout elsewhere depending on the demand in the market. If you visit Disney XD YouTube channel for Germany and Latin America you'll discover that they've been scrapped for Marvel HQ. Since then Germany scrapped Disney XD and didn't turn it into Marvel HQ while L.A. is trying to keep the XD alive for the time being which proves that Marvel HQ is major bust.

Back in June, UK pay-tv operators decided to not renew their carriage agreement with Disney due to the arrival of Disney+. The UK is one of Disney's biggest markets so who wouldn't worry about its effects in other countries.

Following the termination of Disney Channels in the UK, Disney Channel (DStv 303) which is found in Africa decided to take up 7 shows from Disney XD (DStv 304) and place them onto their channel.

Which means new animated shows such as The Owl House, Disney's Fam Jam and Rapunzel's Tangled Adventure S3 will just have to wait for now with all these changes happening.

I did email someone regarding this change and here's their response:

We are currently going through some schedule and programming changes as per our ongoing review of our channel offering. I will be able to share more details of this in the coming weeks.

And yes I will release another article when that day arrives. I wonder how long it will be till ViacomCBS or WarnerMedia do the same.

November 2020 On History Africa | Grant | The Chop | New Seasons

Brand New & Exclusive
GRANT
01 November – 15 November Sundays 20h15
Grant tells the remarkable and quintessentally American story of a humble man who overcomes incredible obstacles, rises to the highest ranks of power and saves the naton not once, but twice. With a seamless blend of dramatc scenes, expert commentary and beautfully enhanced archival imagery, this three- part miniseries uncovers the true legacy of the unlikely hero who led the naton during its greatest tests: the Civil War and Reconstructon.

Brand New & Exclusive
THE CHOP
9 November – 4 January
Mondays 20h15
Hosted by comedian Lee Mack, TV presenter Rick Edwards and Master Carpenter William Hardie, The Chop: Britain’s Top Woodworker sees 10 of the country’s fnest carpenters gather to whitle, carve and chop their way to fnd Britain’s Top Woodworker and the chance to stage their own personal exhibiton at the prestgious William Morris Gallery in London. William Hardie oversees the constructon of a grand and spectacular cabin in the woods, adding a new room every week, each with a diferent historical theme, including Nelson’s cabin on HMS Victory, a Victorian pub and a 1960s’ Mad Men-inspired lounge. The contestants are tasked with creatng items and artefacts to furnish the rooms whilst expert guest judges with specialist knowledge of the diferent historical eras help Lee, Rick and William decide who progresses to the next round and who gets the chop!

Brand New Season
PAWN STARS S22
18 November – 13 January
Wednesdays 21h05
Long before HISTORY’s hit series, PAWN STARS, pawnbrokers provided loans in exchange for personal items of value. At the Gold and Silver Pawn Shop in Las Vegas, the Harrison family clash with friendly camaraderie over items ranging from a 1763 Stradivarius violin to a 1973 Husqvarna Enduro motorcycle. Here, everything has a history, and everything has a price, and you never know what is going to walk through the door.

Brand New Episodes
THE UNXPLAINED
20 November – 19 March
Fridays 20h15
From the producers of Ancient Aliens® and The Curse of Oak Island® comes The UnXplained. From alleged UFO encounters to sudden disappearances to evil possessions, series host William Shatner atempts to get to the truth behind the most bizarre and mysterious events ever reported. With the help of the world’s top scientsts, frst-hand “experiencer” accounts, and dramatc re-enactments, viewers gain shocking insight into what’s really happening – and why.

Thursday, September 3, 2020

Discovery Streamlines EMEA Operation

Discovery has announced it is aligning several of its operating markets in EMEA to improve strategic focus and enable further investment in its D2C businesses.

“We are working systematically to rationalise our operation and find synergies and efficiencies across our EMEA business. We have come a long way over the years and with this restructuring we have defined a clear path towards a leaner operating model, where we utilise the best competence across markets. By combining knowhow and leveraging our scale, we will be able to streamline decision making and operate with greater speed and focus towards future business opportunities”, said Kasia Kieli, President and MD of EMEA.

In the new EMEA operation James Gibbons’ portfolio is realigned to encompass the Nordic markets in addition to the UK markets, and Gibbons becomes GM UK & Nordics. The Nordic markets will be unified under the leadership of Nicklas Norrby. Norrby has been in charge of the Swedish business since 2019 and will now report directly to James Gibbons.

Benelux will be unified with Germany under the leadership of GM Germany & Benelux Susanne Aigner, while Spain and France will be unified under the leadership of GM Iberia & France, Antonio Ruiz.

Jamie Cooke will take on a new combined role for Russia, CEEMCA, MEA & pay-TV, and will continue to cover maternity leave for Victoria Davies. Cooke comes from the role as SVP Chief of Staff EMEA.

Leah Hooper will be taking the role of SVP D2C Growth & Strategy International, and Espen Skoland is named SVP Communications for EMEA.

CEO of TVN, Piotr Korycki has announced his departure from Discovery. He will not be replaced as Kasia Kieli, President and MD of EMEA, will take a leadership role of the Polish television network herself.

(Updated: 04/09/2020)TLNovelas Has A Premiere Date On DStv Alongside Package

A month ago, MultiChoice unveiled 5 new "pop-up channels" at the DStv Showcase. These channels were just sneak peeks which would answer your question on why customer care was clueless about its existence on the platform.

Each channel rollouts within a 3 month period. The first channel set to roll out on viewer's screens will be Televisa.

tlnovelas (currently available on StarTimes/Starsat) offers a huge array of English-dubbed Mexican telenovelas from Latin America's second-largest producer, Televisa.

MultiChoice and StarTimes have the awful and overrated channel FOX Life supplying content from Televisa. To make it worse FOX Life hits the repeat button after the current telenovelas so there's no need to have that useless FOX channel if tlnovelas exists.

Unlike StarTimes, tlnovelas will be available from the 14th of September 2020 until August 2021 on DStv channel 133. This pop-up format might apply to South Africa and a few other African markets as MultiChoice in some markets have a history of advertising permanent channels as popups e.g. Da Vinci, WWE Channel, PBS Kids, ESPN and AfricaNews.

There won't be a Portuguese version of the channel maybe in future they'll have one but for now it's just the English version which will be added.

TLNovelas will be available on DStv Premium, Compact+ and Compact in South Africa. Please note that the availability differs in each market so please consult MultiChoice in your country for further information.

Update: TLNovelas might launch 1st October on DStv channel 133 if not on the specified date mentioned a while back and it will be on Family in the end there's a lot of inaccuracies on their stable.

You can find the lineup here

Three Channels Are Rumored To Be Added On StarTimes Really Soon, Not Sure With Starsat

At the end of August, StarTimes lost Fashion TV, Fashion One, TDC (coming to DStv), FashionBOX, Gametoon and FilmBOX. Reasons for SPI International removal is still a mystery while the owners of Fashion TV and One decided to cut transmission for both Starsat and DStv. Now there's three channels are rumored to be added onto the StarTimes platform which is Comedy Central, TNT and Zoomoo.

Comedy Central is an American basic cable channel owned by ViacomCBS through its domestic network division's Entertainment & Youth Group unit, based in Manhattan. The channel is geared for mature audiences and carries comedy programming in the form of both original, licensed, and syndicated series, stand-up comedy specials, and feature films. The channel has made a huge impact in the African market especially through the DStv platform.

TNT, offers the best of contemporary and Hollywood blockbusters, with programming built on an action-driven, pulse-raising slate, mixed with romantic gems and hilarious comedy just as our African fans like it and offers programming that is relevant and interesting to African fans, with channel premieres of films such as Robin Hood, Jurassic Park and Pitch Perfect. TNT is a brand by WarnerMedia (Cartoon Network, CNN and Boomerang). The channel is currently available on DStv in South Africa and the the rest of Africa.

ZooMoo is a Canadian kids' channel that delivers a unique mix of live-action combined with animation and puppets - it's the world's first fully-interactive pre-school channel dedicated entirely to animals and nature, aimed at kids aged 2-7 years old. The channel is accompanied by a free ZooMoo App, which completes the multi-screen environment, synchronized on a real-time basis with the channel. The channel is available in other parts of Africa like Zuku TV for example. The channel is owned by Blue Ant Media (The Smithsonian Channel and Love Nature).

Comedy Central might be available later this month on StarTimes I doubt Starsat will get it since it's a cheaper version of the StarTimes platform (which costs just as much as DStv in those territories). TNT is said to launch on September 9th on StarTimes this is the first channel I can see on StarSat which to me is a replacement for FilmBOX and Zoomoo is still in the rumored category, for now it will launch as a pop-up channel from the 1st of October on DStv.

Read Also:
- October 2020 On Comedy Central