You're reading it here first.
There is a very good chance that South Africa could get The Oprah Winfrey Network (OWN) TV channel when it starts in January 2011 in America.
If you don't know yet, Oprah Winfrey will end The Oprah Winfrey Show in September next year and then devote her energy to her new TV channel, OWN. Now I can tell you that MultiChoice's DStv or On Digital Media (ODM) which should be operational and broadcasting by then, could be carrying the OWN channel when it launches, or soon after.
I asked OWN in America who tells me ''we are focusing on the domestic launch of OWN, but we will be exploring the international possibilities for OWN.''
South Africa is a prime territory for the channel. The Oprah Winfrey Show on SABC3 is hugely popular. Winfrey's school - The Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy for Girls - is based here. Of course South Africa is the only country outside of America where Winfrey's magazine, O Magazine has a unique regionalized issue with a separate editorial staff.
OWN is also done in conjunction with Discovery Communications Networks who's well-versed in the international roll-out of channels and is expanding quickly in Africa and South Africa with the recent addition of the Discovery HD Showcase channel and Discovery World channel starting in March.
