kykNET (DStv 144) is cancellings its breakfast show Dagbreek after just two years and cutting back dramatically on the shows for its new late night timeslot strand at 21:30 introduced just 4 months ago.
According to sources kykNET is readying dramatic scheduling changes, cancelling its weekday breakfast TV show Dagbreek. The channel might return a new breakfast type show with a new name and format later.
kykNET is also culling its recently introduced late night actuality TV strand, halving the shows' time and outright axing some programming.
On Monday insider sources told TV with Thinus that Dagbreek ("Daybreak"), kykNET's breakfast morning show is over just over two years after it was started in November 2012.
According to sources, the Afrikaans TV channel run by M-Net on MultiChoice's DStv is also culling its late night timeslot strand at 21:30 on weekdays since viewership has been lackluster despite the huge investment.
The late night actuality slot with different themed late night show ranging from news to comedy and talk was introduced with great fanfare in October 2014.
It has however largely failed to perform during the past four months with kykNET viewership for the new shows which has been lackluster despite the introduction of several fresh faces and on-screen talent, new sets and several hours of original, first-run programming nightly.
kykNET is now scaling back its offering at 21:30 on weeknights and will be trying something else.
According to sources all of these kykNET shows like Prontuit, Winslyn and VrydagNag Laat (VNL) are getting cut down from an hour daily to half an hour shows, except Monday's Insig with Rapport newspaper editor Waldimar Pelser which will remain an hour in duration. Flits on Thursdays is getting cancelled outright.
kykNET: A new breakfast programme in the pipeline
On Tuesday kykNET, asked whether Dagbreek has been cancelled and why, tells TV with Thinus that "Dagbreek will take a temporary break from April," saying "a new breakfast programme is in the pipeline and an announcement about it will be made soon".
kykNET gave no indication of how long there won't be a breakfast show from April on the channel, or why Dagbreek is over.
Asked whether the late night timeslot shows on kykNET are being cut down to half an hour except for Insig with Waldimar Pelser and Flits being cancelled completely kykNET only says "the late night programmes built on the Dagbreek premise are also affected but a lot of it is retained."
"More information about the late night schedule from April will be known soon," says kykNET.
kykNET says the channel believes "there's a lot of potential to grow our late night audience with a fresh and innovative offering consisting out of the right mix of actuality, lifestyle and entertainment".
