"We didn't want to be known as the porn channel. It was never our intention to become the porn channel," TopTV told journalists and TV critics at the South African pay TV operator's first ever programming preview in Cape Town.
TopTV was asked about whether the pay TV operator has reached a decision yet on whether to again pursue its stand-alone pornographic package of channels after South Africa's TV regulator turned it down earlier this year.
"It's with the lawyers. It's still with the lawyers," said Heather Kennedy, TopTV's vice president for marketing, when asked whether TopTV has reached a decision yet on whether it will be appealing the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa's (Icasa) decision. Icasa decided not to grant TopTV's application for authorisation to start broadcasting pornographic TV channels.
It started when TopTV - which didn't have an authorisation of application letter from Icasa - told subscribers in a letter at the end of last year that it would start a new stand-alone, separate pornographic bouquet requiring a separate PIN, during the week of Christmas 2011.
At the same time TopTV which has not added new channels, started losing channels from its normal bouquet when channel providers ceased broadcasting. That lead existing subscribers to feel that TopTV was suddenly focusing its attention on a niche product instead of improving its main general offering. The former CEO Vino Govender who has since resigned, also said at TopTV's launch that TopTV wouldn't have pornographic channels.
TopTV was however under immense pressure to launch the porn bouquet since it had already signed broadcasting rights with the European company which it stood to lose if it didn't start broadcasting the channels. Public outroar followed, organisations called for a boycott of TopTV and TopTV advertisers and asking TopTV subscribers to cancel, TopTV investors threatened to disinvest, TopTV and Icasa went to court, and TopTV didn't show up at its own public hearing at Icasa where it's public application for the bouquet was heard.
The embarrassing public porn battle did huge damage to TopTV brand reputation. Eddie Mbalo is the new interim CEO of TopTV which turned two last week.
"The timing was wrong," admitted Heather Kennedy. "It all happened when a company called PSat suddenly came forward and advertised porn; told people they will be showing porn and that people can get TopTV, throw TopTV's smartcard away and get porn through our decoder. At the same time we had lodged an application at Icasa for adult content. And always our intention was for a completely different package, from Playboy. Then events unfolded and I don't need to unpackage it further."
"Our focus is and remains on family viewing. We didn't and don't want to be seen as an adult service. Our focus is on family and family viewing. But there is a market for adult content,'' she said. "Interestingly, Sky in the United Kingdom has 17 adult channels in their basic bouquet - un-PIN-coded to be seen by anyone. Of course we do have in South Africa a slightly different market," she said.
She said TopTV will continue to strengthen it content offering in future as an affordable, pay TV alternative option in South Africa.
