Shock and anger as there won't be any TV broadcast of 2019's 50th Old Mutual Two Oceans Marathon on Saturday; followed by a TV-blackout of the 94th Comrades Marathon in June looming next.

There are shock and anger with even more coming on Saturday when viewers will discover that there won't be any TV broadcast of the 50th Old Mutual Two Oceans Marathon on South African television.

Despite its special 50th anniversary, the Two Oceans Marathon won't be seen on the SABC, e.tv or any of the SuperSport channels on MultiChoice's DStv on Easter Saturday, with people who want to watch it who will have to find an online video live-stream of the iconic ultra-marathon race.

Athletics South Africa (ASA) in a statement only says "the ASA and SABC no longer have a contract. There are ongoing efforts and negotiations to find a replacement host broadcaster" but that doesn't explain what has really happened and what the underlying cause of the non-televised event is.

The Western Province Athletics (WPA) in a statement says " The WPA has a long and proud association with the Two Oceans Marathon, who will be hosting their 50th milestone marathon on 20 April 2019".

"As a marquee event on the WPA calendar, the Two Oceans Marathon has for many years enjoyed live broadcast coverage of the race through the partnership between Athletics South Africa and the SABC. Regrettably, the WPA wishes to inform our running community and the public at large, that the SABC will not be providing live coverage this year."

The Two Oceans Marathon is an event of the Association of International Marathons and Distance Races (AIMS). Therefore, The Two Oceans Marathon falls under, and must go along with the ASA as its governing body and can't unilaterally on its own negotiate broadcasting rights with broadcasters.

All the broadcasting rights of all athletics events in South Africa lie with Athletics South Africa (ASA), irrespective of their status.

At the moment the South African public broadcaster is on the edge of financial collapse and there is no contract in place between the SABC and ASA. With the SABC out of money, and no contract, it makes the broadcast of the Two Oceans Marathon impossible.

The same threat is looming for the Comrades Marathon taking place on 9 June and which used to be shown on the SABC's SABC2 channel.

Since it is also an athletics event, also falling under ASA, and with no contract, as it stands at the moment, the 94th Comrades Marathon in South Africa, just like the 50th Two Oceans Marathon on Saturday, won't be shown on South African television.

Advertising Standards Authority says no to early ejaculation and weak erections commercials on South African television before 9pm.

The Advertising Standards Authority of South Africa (ASA) has ruled that early ejaculation and weak erections commercials should only be shown after 21:00 on South African television, saying adverts for male sexual health containing these words can't be shown during the day or at 20:00.

Viewer Marcus Govender complained to the ASA, saying his kids aged 8 and 10 watched soccer - sports programming with no age restriction - and saw TV commercials that contained sexual suggestions and innuendos during football games. In his complaint he argued that adverts from Men’s Clinic International shouldn't be shown before and during soccer games.

Men’s Clinic International told the ASA that it has two sets of commercials that is broadcast during daytime and during the night on South African television - before 20:00 and after 20:00. The night commercials specifically mentions "weak erections", "early ejaculations" and "low libido", while the daytime commercials from Men's Clinic International do not contain these words.

Men’s Clinic International told the ASA that it disagrees with the viewer over football viewership and said soccer, shown by SuperSport on MultiChoice's DStv satellite pay-TV platform, is "predominantly watched by people over the age of 18".

The ASA directorate ruled that Men’s Clinic International "should flight its night commercials after 21:00, in appropriate programming, so as to avoid young children viewing those commercials".

The ASA directorate said the subtle sexual innuendo in Men’s Clinic International's "day" commercials "would only be understood by an adult who is already familiar with such innuendo. The execution contains no explicit scenes‚ nudity or overt references to sex".

Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) orders SABC to remove its sexist Only Your Man Can Pay Your SABC TV licence advert (because women can't manage).

The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has ordered the SABC to immediately take a sexist (Only Your Man Can) Pay Your SABC TV licence advert off the air that suggests that only men can pay SABC TV licence fees since women apparently can't manage.

Jesse Kaplain complained to the ASA about a SABC TV Licence commercial on the public broadcaster's commercial radio station 5FM that she found extremely sexist.

The ad told listeners that "Luckily you now no longer have to subject the man in your life to the horrors of a shopping mall when TV licence payment time comes around. The new site let him pay from cellphone, tablet or laptop wherever he may be even from the comfort of the couch, while you get to follow the sound of those heels calling your name. Seems fair‚ doesn't it? The new TV licence website - quick‚ convenient‚ secure".

Kaplan told the ASA in her complaints that women are self-sufficient, can pay their own bills and that men are not needed to do that.

The ASA agreed with the complainant and said "in essence, the complainant found the advertising sexist and gender stereotyping", saying that the commercial "makes reference to men hating malls, but now the men can stay at home and can pay while a woman just goes shopping for pretty shoes. Because clearly she has nothing else to do and he's the bread winner and makes all the important decisions and payments in life."

The ASA ruled that "The storyline of the commercial is reliant on an assumption that the man has to pay the TV licence. Previously, he would have had to go to the mall to do so, and his female partner would have had to persuade him to do this."

"Now, he can sit on the couch and pay it. But either way, the man has to pay the TV licence. The idea that the woman could have simply paid the licence while she was at the mall is not entertained. The communication is, as the complainant highlights, dependent on an assumption that women are financially or mentally incapable of paying the TV licence if a man is around to do the job."

The ASA that that what it finds "untenable is not the humorous stereotyping of the genders, but the underlying assumptions regarding the role and ability of each gender."

The ASA ordered the SABC to withdrew its SABC TV licence fee ad with immediate effect and not to use it again in future.

MultiChoice agrees not to advertise films that it doesn't have available on its DStv BoxOffice service.

MultiChoice has agreed not to broadcast one of its TV commercials on DStv again - an advert touting its DStv BoxOffice service - with films that it doesn't actually have available on its video-on-demand service.

It comes after a complaint to the Advertising Standards Authority of South Africa (ASA) earlier this year that MultiChoice was showing a DStv BoxOffice commercial that included the names of four films - Hidden Figures, Hacksaw Ridge, La La Land and Moonlight - as well as the number of Oscar nominations and "wins" the films received, and the claim "BoxOffice by DStv has the gold" at the end.

Geoffrey Skelton lodged a consumer complaint against MultiChoice's DStv BoxOffice and said that MultiChoice's TV commercial was designed to mislead the public into believing that these films are currently available to view on DStv BoxOffice, "when in fact none of these films are available to view".

MultiChoice in its defence told the ASA that "the  advertisement promotes the types of films that a subscriber can expect from DStv BoxOffice, and took advantage of the recent Oscar Awards and the films that either were nominated or won awards".

MultiChoice denied that the advertisement was designed or intended to mislead the public, but agreed that its message may be misleading, apologised, and said it won't repeat the advertisement in the same format.

The ASA directorate said that where an advertiser provides an unequivocal undertaking to withdraw or amend its advertising in a manner that addresses the concerns raised, the undertaking may, at the discretion of the ASA, be accepted without considering the merits of the matter.

MultiChoice's "undertaking appears to address the complainant’s concerns and there is therefore no need to consider the merits of the matter at this time".

Sexually suggestive ShowMax TV commercial reported to the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) for being broadcast before the watershed time period.

A sexually suggestive TV commercial from ShowMax has been reported to the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) after a complaint that it’s broadcast during the day when it’s inappropriate for children.

The ASA is still to judge on the matter; the first advertising complaint about the ShowMax video-on-demand (VOD) streaming service.

The ShowMax TV commercial that started in August revolves around an almost naked man gyrating in front of a woman when a child walks in. It’s broadcast in South Africa in the afternoon before the so-called “watershed” cut-off period of 20:00 before which more risque TV content is not allowed due to the likelihood that children are watching.  

According to the complaint, "the advertisement appears during day programming and is unsuitable for the timeslots when it appears".

ShowMax says if the "ShowMax dad ad" is deemed unsuitable "then surely we need a wholesale rethink on what else makes it on to daytime TV".

"The irony is if one were watching ShowMax there wouldn't be any ads and you could activate the kids profile and know 100% that nobody is going to stumble across anything they shouldn't".

Naspers' ShowMax that turned one year old in mid-August and changed its logo, introduced the option for various profiles to filter content for children at the beginning of August. Competitor PCCW Global's ONTAPtv.com will turn one year old on 16 September.

Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) awaits a response from M-Net after complaint regarding alleged misleading MasterChef SA prize.

The Advertising Standards Authority of South Africa (ASA) expects to receive a response today from M-Net after a complaint was laid with the ASA regarding the alleged misleading promotion of the prize for the winner of M-Net's reality show MasterChef SA.

ALSO READ: M-Net in new metamedia firestorm as MasterChef SA scandal now involves The Citizen newspaper and Radio 702.

Farzana Omar from the ASA'a dispute resolutions unit says the ASA is awaiting a response from Webber Wentzel, the law firm acting on behalf of M-Net by the end of today. It follows a complaint which the ASA received alleging misleading advertising of the prize the winner of MasterChef South Africa would receive, The Citizen reports.

The Broadcasting Complaints Commission of South Africa (BCCSA) has meanwhile also been dragged into the furore which erupted in June. The Citizen newspaper laid a complaint with the BCCSA alleging unfair comments on Radio 702 regarding articles The Citizen wrote about the MasterChef SA prizes.