"Over 4,5 million DStv subscribers in South Africa and over 2 million DStv subscribers across the continent will be able to tune in to the Oprah Winfrey Network (OWN) programming block on Thursdays as well as on Sundays on TLC Entertainment," said Collins Khumalo (below), CEO of MultiChoice South Africa.
"To Oprah, welcome back to South Africa and to Africa," said Collins Khumalo who spoke at the exclusive VIP reception and the official launch event of TLC Entertainment and OWN on DStv held Monday afternoon in Johannesburg.
"TLC has been a real success for us internationally, including here in South Africa," said Kasia Kieli (above), the managing director and president of Discovery Networks for the Central& Eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa (CEEMEA) region at the launch event.
"We're looking forward to the new TLC Entertainment with an Oprah Winfrey OWN programming block on it. Some of Oprah Winfrey's shows were seen on TLC already, such as the interview with Lance Armstrong, an incredible documentary about Oprah's school here, and there's more of that going to be shown on a regular basis," said Kasia Kieli.
"I also want to thank our partners at DStv to make it possible for us. It's really wonderful for us to take this partnership to a next level."
"Im really excited," said Oprah Winfrey. "I have a deep love for your country and from the very beginning of our launch in the United States of the Oprah Winfrey Network I was saying to my partner David Zaslav: 'I think people really like me in South Africa."
"Everywhere I go I still run into people who say: 'We miss your show, we miss your show.' And now I say that now on Thursdays and on Sundays you can see me again," said Oprah Winfrey.
"I'm really thrilled. This is the way we should have done it in the United States. OWN should have started with a few shows that we really, really, really powerfully believed in and then have built from there," said Oprah Winfrey.
"So we are learning from all the challenges that we've had, that the way to build the audience and to grow the audience is to start small, but strong, with programming that you believe in. So Oprah's Next Chapter and the documentary about my girls' school in South Africa really represents the heart of OWN."
