Suspended TV boss Leo Manne resigns as general manager for TV channels at the SABC after protracted investigation, fight to be reinstated.

The SABC's embattled and suspended TV boss Leo Manne has resigned and is gone from the SABC, following a protracted investigation and a behind-the-scenes fight to be reinstated and get his job back.

Leo Manne, previously the longtime SABC1 channel head who was then promoted to general manager for TV channels over SABC1, SABC2 and SABC3 at the SABC, was suspended by the SABC on 25 September 2014, "pending investigations".

The SABC suspended Leo Manne over allegations that he was listed as a director of Siyaya TV, one of the new pay-TV operators who received a licence in 2014 from the broadcasting regulator, the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (Icasa) to start a new subscription television service.

Siyaya Free to Air TV will be a new competitor for not just MultiChoice's DStv, On Digital Media's (ODM) StarSat and Platco Digital's OpenView HD (OVHD) but also terrestrial broadcasters like the SABC and e.tv.

Siyaya Free to Air TV for instance snagged the exclusive TV broadcasting and radio rights to Bafana Bafana games last year in a 6-year deal reportedly worth more than R1 billion, taking it away from the SABC which used to have it and show these soccer games on SABC1.

Leo Manne tendered his resignation to the SABC and officially left the SABC at the end of April.

According to the Companies and Intellectual Property Commission (CIPC) records, Leo Manne was a director of Siyaya TV Consortium. Leo Manne says he declared his business interests to the SABC in 2012.

According to the CIPC, Siyaya TV Consortium shares an address and auditors with Siyaya Free To Air TV, although they are two separate business ventures.

After months of being suspended, Leo Manne took his case to the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA), demanding to be reinstated as the general manager for TV channels at the SABC.

Besides asking to be reinstated, Leo Manne argued that the SABC suspension process and investigation had been unfair.

In April however, the CCMA ruled in favour of the SABC. The CCMA says "in the matter between the SABC and Leonard Moeranne Manne an arbitration award was issued on 21 April 2015 with the arbitrator ruling in favour of the employer of the employer".

Leo Manne tendered his official resignation from his SABC position after the CCMA ruling, which also brings an end to the SABC's investigation which dragged along.

The SABC didn't announce the resignation and the permanent position of general manager of TV channels at the SABC remains vacant.

South African soccer TV rights sold to new Siyaya pay-TV service by Safa; live local soccer coverage gone for millions on SABC.

The soccer TV rights of live South African soccer has been sold to the new pay-TV entrant Siyaya Free to Air which is set to start Siyaya TV, and which will mean that millions of South African TV households will be cut off from access to watching live soccer matches on the SABC.

The Siyaya Free to Air consortium has already paid R25 million to the South African Football Association (Safa) in an exclusive 6 year deal that will be worth R1 billion and which will remove live TV broadcasts of Bafana Bafana games from the SABC.

The SABC last month complained in parliament and warned that the public broadcaster can no longer afford to pay for rising sports rights, and that continuing to do so would bankrupt the SABC.

The SABC's existing soccer broadcasting rights for Bafana Bafana games ends in April 2015 and the South African Football Association with its new deal with Siyaya, won't renew it.

The SABC will have to buy the soccer rights from Siyaya Free to Air, and not Safa, if the public broadcaster wants to show national soccer games - and won't be able to do so live. The SABC, if it's willing to pay up, will at most be able to show some games, and on a delayed basis.

Siyaya Free to Air is one of 5 new pay-TV entrants who were granted provisional licences by the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (Icasa) recently to start new subscription television services in South Africa.

Siyaya TV has talk show host Dali Thambo as one of the investment backers. Siyaya is a 100% black-owned media consortium whose major shareholder is the Bakgatla Ba Kgafela tribe in the North-West with a 40% interest, as well as shareholders like the South African Post Office chairperson Vuyo Mahlati, Transnet Freight CEO Siyabonga Gama, and Siyaya board member Aubrey Tau.

Siyaya wants to start its own local soccer league and broadcast those matches for a monthly subscription fee of R70 with a PVR. Siyaya TV has now grabbed the Bafana Bafana soccer rights as well.

According to reports, the deal between Siyaya Free to Air and the South Africa Football Association (Safa) means that all Bafana Bafana and junior national soccer games will be shown on Siyaya TV, along with Safa TV as a magazine show, and the annual Safa Awards. 

Other exclusive soccer broadcasts on Siyaya TV form part of the deal, like showing the ABC Motsepe League (First Division) and the Sasol Women's League.  

Viewers who've been watching the national soccer and Bafana Bafana on the SABC will now have to buy a decoder and pay a monthly subscription fee when Siyaya TV plans to launch from June 2015 in South Africa.

Five new possible pay-TV services for South Africa, as the broadcasting regulator hands out 5 new provisional licences to pay-TV operators.

Possible new pay-TV competition is coming to South Africa with South Africa's broadcasting regulator which has granted five provisional licences for individual commercial subscription television services.

Pay for gay television, education television, local content for the lower and middle market, and club soccer matches from Southern Africa could be coming to South African pay-TV subscribers with provisional pay-TV licences granted by the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (Icasa) to Close-T Broadcast Networks Holdings (CloseTV), Mindset Media Enterprises, Kagiso Media (Kagiso TV), Siyaya Free to Air and Mobile TV.

It remains to be seen whether any of the companies granted licences would be able to bring a successful pay-TV service to market in South Africa's second attempt to open up the country's pay-TV sector to more players since 2007.

Out of the previous round of pay-TV licences granted by Icasa to Telkom Media, On Digital Media (ODM), e.Sat and Walking on Water TV (WowTV), only the struggling On Digital Media (ODM) actually launched the TopTV, now StarSat, service which is in business rescue.

e.tv decided not to start a service, Telkom Media which became Super 5 Media collapsed and WowTV never got off the ground. 

The five companies who got provisional licences to start subscription television services in South Africa have three months to  respond to the regulator with various documents and proof that they're able to start pay-TV services before permanent licences will be granted.

The new companies all want in on South Africa's lucrative pay-TV market dominated by MultiChoice's DStv, M-Net's analogue subscription TV service, and ODM's StarSat while TV viewers and the industry are hamstrung by the government's ongoing shambolic delay to start digital terrestrial television (DTT) and the promise of more TV channels.

Close-T Broadcasting Network wants to show South African viewers pay for gay TV content in a service its calling CloseTV which includes a pay-per-view on-demand service.

Kagiso Media wants to start Kagiso TV with around 70 TV channels for a subscription fee of R240 per month and with channels heavily focused on local content driven by entertainment and news.

Siyaya TV with talk show host Dali Thambo as one of the investment backers, want to start its own local soccer league and broadcast those matches for a monhtly subscription fee of R70 with a PVR.

Mindset Media wants to broadcast educational content to public schools around the country. Mindset wants provinces to pay TV subscription fees per school. Mobile TV wants to start eight TV channels and four radio stations for mobile devices such as cellphones and tablets.

"Although the conditions imposed are specific to each of the five applicants, they generally relate to, among others, confirmation of equity ownership; funding requirements; further research; confirmation of local content; and programming content agreements," Icasa says in a statement announcing the provisional pay-TV licences.

The provisional licences are the result of a new set of hearings which the broadcasting regulator held in July 2013, following the new invitation to apply for subscription television licences in February 2012.

In February the broadcasting regulator announced that it is launching an investigation into subscription television in South Africa and the massive failure rate of licensed companies to start successful pay-TV operations in the country.

BREAKING. Five new potential pay-TV players for South Africa: Kagiso TV, Siyaya, Mindset Media, Close-T Broadcasting Network and Mobile TV.

You're reading it here first. 

Is Kagiso TV, Siyaya Free to Air, Mindset Media Enterprises, Close-T Broadcasting Network and Mobile TV the new Telkom Media, Shenzhen Media, On Digital Media, Walking on Water (WOWtv) and eSat?

All five of these companies are looking to start brand-new pay-TV services in South Africa and will do presentations before South Africa's broadcasting regulator, the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (Icasa) next week from Wednesday until Friday for possible subscription television licences.

South Africa has a dysmal track-record when it comes to the licensing, actual start, and flourishing of pay-TV operators.

MultiChoice has built the successful DStv satellite pay-TV service. Telkom Media which was licenced with the rest and had the highest hopes of starting a service crumbled and failed and turned into Shenzhen Media, after which On Digital Media managed to launch TopTV which floundered as well and is currently in business rescue since December 2012.

eSat, Walking on Water (WOWtv) and Telkom Media - despite investments of millions -never got off the ground leaving DStv and TopTV as the only two choices besides M-Net as an analogue pay-TV broadcaster which isn't offering individual new subscriptions to just M-Net until digital terrestrial broadcasting (eventually) launches commercially in South Africa.

Now Icasa is trying for round two of licensing more subscription television operators and Kagiso TV, Siyaya Free to Air, Mindset Media Enterprises, Close-T Broadcasting Network and Mobile TV are all willing and wanting to start pay TV in South Africa.

Public hearings will be taking place next week in Sandton at Icasa's head office where all five wannabe subscription TV service operators will do presentations and state their cases after Icasa received applications for individual commercial subscription broadcasting service licences.

Kagiso TV and Siyaya Free to Air will do their presentations at Icasa on Tuesday. Mindset Media Enterprises and Close-T Broadcast Network will present on Wednesday. Mobile T will do their presentation before Icasa on Friday morning.

The public hearings are open for the public to attend.