SABC to go commercial
June 30, 2014
By Chris Forrester
South Africa’s public broadcaster (SABC) is to launch an all-entertainment channel on Multichoice’s DStv platform by the end of this year. SABC already has a 24/7 news channel on DStv.
SABC says it will draw material from its archive, and that it recognises that partnerships between itself and private companies will become increasingly important, and is an important focus for SABC.
“We should be launching another channel with DStv before this year is over which is a general entertainment channel,” Leo Manne, the general manager for TV channels at the SABC, told local press at the SABC’s programming Upfront presentation.
“There are some TV channels that we will [create] and build ourselves to meet our mandate [for DTT], but there’s some entertainment TV channels – some specific niche entertainment TV channels – that we will go into partnerships with others and other public partners to ensure that we create entertainment that speaks to all South Africans,” said Leo Manne.