The SABC is set to bulldoze the schedule of SABC3 in boss Hlaudi Motsoeneng's new decree to banish all international shows and films - but with less than a month to go until July the public broadcaster isn't telling viewers or advertisers what hit shows will be culled.
The SABC's controversial chief operating
officer (COO) Hlaudi Motsoeneng announced at the SABC's headquarters in
Auckland Park on Tuesday a a new edict of 90% local content for the SABC's TV
channels – that will come into effect from July starting with a dramatic
reshaping of SABC3 with 80% local content.
The SABC didn't provide a new SABC3 schedule
or explained exactly how expensive new local content will be paid for and was
silent on what new local programming will be added and what it will replace.
It's also not clear why the SABC is starting
its local content gamble with SABC3 – the broadcaster's only commercial TV
channel that's supposed to be an ad and sponsorship revenue driver for the
broadcaster.
Hlaudi Motsoeneng said he now helps to approve shows
himself to help cut through SABC backlog.
"When you come to me I will respond
now. If you impress me it's 'yes'. If not, it's 'no' and you should know not to
come back," Hlaudi Motsoeneng said.
‘They should walk like me and talk like me’
"The team that I work with, they should
walk like me and talk like me – that is what I am expecting from them," said
Hlaudi Motsoeneng.
"That is how I run the organisation, because we need to sing one song at the SABC and that song should be sung by everybody within the organisation. And we're not apologetic about it."
Hlaudi Motsoeneng told producers that "I'm also aware some of people are taking chance. You need to give us quality content.You need to give us content that we able to attract an audience. And if we don't attract audience there's no reason why we should keep such content on our platform."
"Make sure when you do business with us, you give us quality. But it's also important that you have Venda dramas, soapies and so on and so on. Afrikaans also. And other different languages."
"When we think, we think about English. When we talk we talk English. I don't understand why most people will write dramas and soapies in English. But I think we have to be proud about our own African languages."
"That is how I run the organisation, because we need to sing one song at the SABC and that song should be sung by everybody within the organisation. And we're not apologetic about it."
Hlaudi Motsoeneng told producers that "I'm also aware some of people are taking chance. You need to give us quality content.You need to give us content that we able to attract an audience. And if we don't attract audience there's no reason why we should keep such content on our platform."
"Make sure when you do business with us, you give us quality. But it's also important that you have Venda dramas, soapies and so on and so on. Afrikaans also. And other different languages."
"When we think, we think about English. When we talk we talk English. I don't understand why most people will write dramas and soapies in English. But I think we have to be proud about our own African languages."
‘Getting rid of what’s no longer working for
SABC3’
Hlaudi Motsoeneng said "We have given
instructions. The how is not my business. From July 1 we should see a different
SABC. I think it's achievable. We are going to get rid of content that is no
longer working for SABC3. There is no way that it can't happen, it's
happening".
The international content on SABC3 is
ironically what is working for the channel – dominating in the viewership
ratings race while local shows, although in better primetime slots, struggle to
get more viewers.
Viewers have no idea whether they're losing
their soaps – The Bold and the Beautiful and Days of Our Lives
that's part of the most watched content on the channel – or popular
international shows ranging from Survivor to The Mentalist.
Advertisers and ad agencies who book slots
and ad buys and who do so at least a month in advance are likewise in the dark
about SABC3's July schedule, not knowing what will be shown during what
timeslot.
Because advertisers buy specific audiences, it's impossible to place
ads not knowing what will show and what audience segment it will reach.
Looking at the top 20 most watched shows on
SABC3 during April (May has not yet been released), soaps like Bold and Days
are the most popular and most watched shows, with local soap Isidingo in
second place.
Interestingly, 14 out of the top 20 most
watched pieces of content on SABC3 in April were international content.
If the SABC3 cans Bold and Days,
Isidingo that's already in a better primetime spot will move to the
number one place – but it won't show a ratings increase. It will become number
one with less viewers than what Bold pulls and the viewership figure and share
is what determines advertising rates.
Put differently: international content like Bold,
Days, Survivor, The Mentalist and foreign films on the
SABC3 schedule actually "over-deliver" in terms of audiences given where's its
slotted and shown, while existing local content like High Rollers and Top
Billing , already in plum timeslots, in a sense under-deliver.
Adding more – and unknown – local content
from emerging TV producers will not suddenly lift SABC3’s ratings in terms of
the existing local content and the new local content. And it’s ratings that
matters most for the SABC’s commercial TV channel, much more so than SABC1 and
SABC2.
1. The Bold and the Beautiful 1.57 million
2 .Isidingo 1.42 million
3. Days of Our Lives 1.05 million
4. News 1.02 million
5. Show White and the
Huntsman 998 997
6. SABC3 wows Polokwane 994 608
7. Gourmet 930 451
8. Cricket: ENG vs West
Indies 927 077
9. SABC3 filler 920 865
10. Contraband 823 741
11. Horton Foote's Trip to
Bountiful 795 165
12. High
Rollers 696 020
13. Take It All 658 684
14. Pastor Brown 658 884
15. Heaven's Fall 632 176
16. The Man with the Iron
Fist 609 306
17. Survivor 581 469
18. The Mentalist 580 210
19. A Day Late and a
Dollar Short 578
845
20. Top Billing 577 272
