Animal Planet is no longer available in South Africa after MultiChoice axed the channel in late-2017 without adequate warning and the removal of the channel as part of a new Discovery channels set carriage deal eliciting anger from many DStv subscribers.
Animal Planet is available on Econet Media's Kwesé TV in Southern Africa in countries outside of South Africa.
Animal Planet will change its on-air look on 28 October and will introduce some new global programming like Cricket! It's the Irwins following the nature conservation family and Amanda to the Rescue in which Amanda Giese cares for dogs that others have discarded.
The new Animal Planet appearance will be phased in in more than 200 countries and territories and was done by the New York-based graphic design firm Chermayeff & Geismar & Haviv (CGH).
Animal Planet says it remains committed to "keeping the childhood joy and wonder of animals alive by bringing people up close in every way" and that the refocused Animal Planet will be "a multi-platform experience for every member of the family".
"Animal Planet has been a much-loved brand around the world for more than 20 years, and the time has never been more right to engage with mass audiences across every platform who are as passionate about animals as we are," says Susanna Dinnage, Animal Planet global president.
"We are able to reach all generations through our content and storytelling – we are here to entertain and delight by bringing people up close to animals and nature."
It's interesting to note that Animal Planet that started out covering animals, then shifted and rebranded to "Surprisingly Human" and focused on the interaction between humans and animals with landmark series like Whale Wars, now seems to change again to be offering programming for viewers of different ages, created around how "families" interact with animals and the dynamics between "families" of animals, as well as human families interacting with animals.
Pablo Pulido, the vice president for marketing at Animal Planet says "Animal Planet required a mark to represent the global aspect of the brand, as an experience that translates across countries, regions and cultures and beyond linear: a platform agnostic approach."
"CGH is known for developing iconic brand marks and I'm excited they delivered a truly global mark for Animal Planet."
Sagi Haviv, a partner at Chermayeff & Geismar & Haviv, says "We are thrilled to be working with Animal Planet and wanted to capture the energy and joy of this beloved brand. Building on Animal Planet's original mark, the new leaping elephant is fresh and distinctive, and should be able to travel across platforms, audiences and the world".
Animal Planet is in active development and production on more than 25 new series to to be announced later this year and in 2019.
It's not clear what or how much of this Animal Planet programming DStv subscribers might possibly see on some of Discovery's other channels currently carried on MultiChoice's platform.
