BREAKING. e.tv, eNCA in chaotic management meltdown; broadcaster plunged into chaos as COO Bronwyn Keene-Young resigns.

The South African free-to-air broadcaster e.tv is plunging deeper and deeper into a massive management meltdown and its biggest existential reputational and credibility crisis ever as its decade long chief operating officer (COO) Bronwyn Keene-Young also suddenly resigned this morning.

e.tv and eNCA (DStv 403) are shocked while Bronwyn Keene-Young, who've been with e.tv for 15 years - 10 of which as COO and then lately as "chief corporate officer" - is following her husband Marcel Golding out the door who abruptly quit as CEO on Monday.

Marcel Golding, Bronwyn Keene-Young and e.tv chairperson John Copelyn founded e.tv as a difficult start-up which they've grown to a successful South African TV business but now Bronwyn Keene-Young who is taking years of TV experience with her, is slamming John Copelyn saying that he "doesn't understand that it is Marcel's vision, which has driven us to the success we enjoy today and that he believes that he can destroy Marcel's legacy".

Marcel Golding claims political interference with e.tv and its news brands eNews and eNCA, and now Bronwyn Keene-Young, married to Marcel Golding, slams John Copelyn confirming what Marcel Golding says.

Bronwyn Keene-Young writes that "John Copelyn doesn't tell you that he has told our exco that eNCA's news coverage is 'problematic' for Hosken Consolidated Investments' other interest and that our news had to be reined in so that it didn't affect HCI's ability to source gambling licences from government".

Bronwyn Keene-Young writes that "John Copelyn is silent on how he has attempted to manipulate this company from behind the scenes".

"He fails to tell that earlier this year, when I resisted editorial instructions from Yunis Shaik, he [John Copelyn] sought my removal from the company. After pushback from our exco, he agreed to let me stay on provided that I was sidelined into a new position in which news no longer reported to me."

"Copelyn doesn't tell you that he told me that the line of editorial independence was not one for the news editorial team to determine and nor was it for Sabido management to determine. That line would be determined by HCI."

"Copelyn doesn't tell you that he was fully aware of the 'Ellies shares' matter from early August and that he did nothing about it until early October until all other attempts and threats to get Marcel to resign had failed."

"He doesn't tell you that throughout this period, each time Marcel refused to acquiesce to Copelyn's demands and 'go quietly', that Marcel was threatened with disciplinary action on the Ellies matter.

"He doesn’t tell you that only in early October – a full two months after Copelyn had become aware of the details of the Ellies matter – did he raise this as a disciplinary issue with Marcel and all of a sudden the Ellies issue became serious enough for HCI to suspend Marcel for 'gross misconduct' and for Copelyn to lock Marcel out of his office."

"In his letter, Copelyn has gone to great lengths to misrepresent the facts and to hide his own unacceptable behavior in this entire matter. He does not understand this company, its people, and its DNA, and he never will."

"He does not understand the depth of love and loyalty, which staff have to a CEO who has carried them for 15 years from virtual bankruptcy to great success."

The shocking top management infighting and resignations has rocked e.tv and eNCA and engulfed e.tv, eNews and eNCA in a reputational and credibility crisis which is tarnishing e.tv, eNews and eNCA's news reputations and seriously denting not only e.tv's brand but also how viewers are now going to perceive eNCA's news coverage.

As South Africa delays digital terrestrial television migration, imported multi-functional set-top boxes are already on sale in the country.

With South Africa's long-stalled switch from analogue to digital terrestrial television (DTT) - a process known as digital migration - going nowhere, South African TV viewers can already buy imported, yet illegal, multi-functional set-top boxes (STBs).

South Africa's TV industry is supposed to flip from analogue to digital broadcasting but the country, due to multiple delays, have fallen behind countries such as even Zimbabwe and Rwanda as manufacturers, broadcasters and law makers continue to bicker.

As South Africa can no longer make and will miss the international agreed upon deadline of June 2015 from the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) by which to switch of analogue TV broadcasts, the country has also become profitable for sellers of imported - yet illegal - STBs with which viewers can already watch digital TV channels.

Not only can South African viewers watch free-to-air digital TV channels with these STBs, but the boxes also allow viewers to record TV shows, and to even save that programming to external storage like USBs and external hard drives.

These STBs are already on sale in South Africa and cost cheaper and can now be bought long before the locally manufactured STBs which will cost around R800 per box are produced and sold.

The South African government has failed to award tenders to local STB manufacturers in a request for tenders which was issued last year, lapsed, and will have to be reissued.

Meanwhile broadcasters and manufacturers are fighting and deadlocked over the inclusion - or not - of what is known as a Conditional Access (CA) system.

A CA system is built-in hardware and software with which broadcasters and manufacturers would be able to "lock" or encrypt digital television signals. While e.tv wants a CA system in STBs, the SABC, MultiChoice, M-Net and community TV stations in South Africa are all against it.

A CA system would make the STBs more expensive. A CA system would also "protect" a South African STBs industry, since only boxes made in South Africa would work, imported STBs wouldn't be able to decrypt signals, and boxes taken outside of South Africa's TV broadcasting borders would be "turned off".

"There is little to stop pirate set-top boxes from flooding the South African market and destroying the local manufacturing market because South African manufacturers will comply with the South African Bureau of Standards (SABS) but won't be able to compete with cheap, low quality, foreign STBs," says Bronwyn Keene-Young, the group chief operating officer (COO) of e.tv.

Keene-Young says the illegal STBs already on sale in South Africa in large metropolitan areas from Johannesburg to Cape Town do not meet the SABS specifications.

"With a lack of copy-protection mechanisms on the HD output to the TV, and into the personal video recording (PVR) functionality on these boxes, the broadcast and manufacturing industry would need to rely on the already heavily-burdened law enforcement agencies to stop these boxes from entering the country," says Keene-Young.

"Having the broadcast signal protected at the commercial launch of DTT will go a long way to make sure that these boxes become redundant and therefore pose no threat to the local manufacturing industry".

ALSO READ: Stalled digital terrestrial television (DTT) migration in South Africa "hijacked" for job creation - leaving behind the one thing which should be first: the TV viewer.

TOLDJA! DStv Mobile and e.Mobile unveil the first true mobile television broadcasting service on cellphones in South Africa.

You're reading it here first.


Well, exactly as I broke the news RIGHT HERE last week about DStv and e.tv announcing a brand-new DVB-H mobile television service - one that will be free for a while, MultiChoice and e.tv did exactly everything I told you is coming.

Exactly as I was first to spill, MultiChoice's DStv and e.tv has partnered up offering (just as I said) sport channels, the Cartoon Network, Africa Magic, Channel O and the eNews Channel to name a few that I've already revealed last week. The frequency spectrum allocated to mobile broadcasting currently enables 15 channels via DVB-H technology and more channels will be added by e.tv and DStv Mobile to their offerings over time. (The only bit that i DIDN'T know was this little bit, that's actually interesting by itself.)

It will be free immediately until March 2011 as I've said, and will then cost R36 per month on DVB-H enabled cellphones from 1 April 2011. Network coverage is available in the major centres of Johannesburg, Pretoria, Soweto, CapeTown, Port Elizabeth, Polokwane, Mbombela, Rustenburg, Bloemfontein and Durban.

''The technology and business models are still evolving globally and it will take many years to see any returns on this investment,'' says Imtiaz Patel, CEO of MultiChoice SA. The company has spent a lot of money and made huge investments over the past few years in mobile television while the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (Icasa) dragged its feet in drafting regulations and issueing mobile TV licences.

''The Digital Video Broadcast Handheld (DVB-H) technology rolled out by MultiChoice for broadcast Mobile TV in South Africa offers excellent digital sound and picture quality whilst making efficient use of the allocated spectrum,'' says Mark Rayner, the general manager of DStv Mobile in a press statement.

''This is only the start of e.tv's mobile broadcast services,'' says Bronwyn Keene-Young, e.tv's group chief operating officer in a separate, simultaneously released press statement. ''The launch of e.Mobile TV in South Africa makes our channels accessible to our viewers at times when they normally would not be able to watch TV.''

According to the broadcaster, e.tv as a TV channel will be made available on the mobile platform in due course. ''e.tv is committed to providing its services anywhere at anytime.  Technology such as mobile broadcasting offers our industry new opportunities all the time and our viewers more choice,'' says Bronwyn Keene-Young.

ALSO READ: MultiChoice delights with a great new gadget for true mobile television in South Africa: say hello to the Drifta decoder.
ALSO READ: MultiChoice and e.tv set to launch first true (and free) mobile television for cellphones in South Africa.

INTERVIEW. e.tv Africa: ''Our ultimate objective is a Pan African footprint - to be on the ground in every single country in Africa.''

You're reading it here first.

I broke the news RIGHT HERE earlier this morning that e.tv is launching its e.tv Africa service into the continent and just got off the phone with Bronwyn Keene-Young, chief operating officer for e.tv, talking to her about e.tv Africa.

Now you can read the first print interview with Bronwyn Keene-Young talking about e.tv's vision for e.tv Africa. She discusses some of the challenges, talks about why TV content is (still) king, and how e.tv's Pan African outlook is fuelling this broadcasting expansion of the TV channel. I asked her how difficult or easy it is to do specifically TV business in Africa, what it is that e.tv brings to African TV audiences, and for some behind-the-scenes insight into the logistics involved in operating this continental TV service.

For the full interview (the first one you'll read anywhere) and for more perspective on e.tv Africa, click on READ MORE below.

BREAKING. e.tv launches e.tv Africa in 12 countries across the continent.

You're reading it here first.

I can exclusively reveal first that e.tv is launching a brand-new TV syndication service, e.tv Africa in 12 countries across the continent.

The channel's programming is very popular across the continent with e.tv's signal that is highly sought after in Africa - especially when it comes to pirate decoders across the continent. In South Africa e.tv now has over 13 million viewers. TV viewers in 12 countries across Africa will now get a 24 hour syndicated version of South Africa's e.tv TV channel content, says Bronwyn Keene-Young, e.tv's chief operating officer.

''It was always e.tv's plan to introduce a Pan African syndicated service,'' says Bronwyn Keene-Young. ''Our programme research shows that Africans are passionate for high-quality African and international produced content. We believe that e.tv Africa will replicate the success of e.tv in South Africa.''

e.tv Africa will provide popular e.tv programming including Hollywood movies, WWE wrestling and the channel's locally produced and very popular daily soapies, Rhythm City and Scandal. The channel also includes two live half-hour news bulletins from the eNews Africa service, launched by the eNews channel in October last year. These bulletins focus on pan-African news. e.tv will be providing e.tv Africa to Kenya on Nation 2, Namibia on One Africa Television, Zimbabwe on ZTV2, Nigeria, Tanzania, Uganda, Rwanda, Guinea, Burundi and the Central African Republic on Star TV, Nigeria on MITV, to Ghana on eGhana, e.tv’s sister channel, as well as Botswana on eBotswana which is also a sister channel to e.tv. These local broadcasters can insert their own local news and other local content as well.