Discovery Inc. pulls all of its TV channels from StarTimes in Africa and StarSat in South Africa in unresolved contract conflict.

by Thinus Ferreira

Pay-TV customers of StarTimes across Africa, including StarSat subscribers in South Africa, abruptly lost all of the Discovery TV channels on Monday without warning because of an unexplained and unresolved contract conflict.

StarTimes and StarSat subscribers woke up on Monday to discover that their Discovery channels - StarTimes Real Time, Investigation Discovery, Investigation Discovery French, Discovery Science and Discovery Science French - were all gone. 

The end of the channels come after Discovery Inc. cut its Discovery Family channel in late-January from channel 222 on StarTimes and StarSat after just two years on the Chinese pay-TV platform even before it was supposed to go dark on 31 January.

Discovery Family went dark after the Fine Living Network (FLN), that is also from the Discovery Inc. stable, abruptly disappeared in December 2020 after more than a decade on the air on StarSat, with the move that also angering subscribers.

StarTimes and StarSat subscribers are fuming over the fact that they were only told in August, and after it happened that the channels are gone, saying they would have cancelled their subscriptions had they known in July or with a month's notice.

Discovery Inc. in response to a media enquiry, told TVwithThinus on Wednesday that "StarTimes Real Time, Investigation Discovery, and Discovery Science will no longer be available through the provider as of 2 August. However, lovers of real-life entertainment can still enjoy a plethora of world-class content from Discovery on DStv."

Discovery didn't answer why customers and viewers of its channels were not told or warned beforehand about the loss of the TV channels.

Luyanda Cele, StarSat spokesperson, told TVwithThinus in response to a media enquiry on Thursday morning that "Please note that the channels are removed due to contractual issues and communication was sent immediately to our customer via bmail, SMS and on our social medial pages".

On Facebook StarSat only posted a notification on Wednesday morning, long after 2 August, while subscribers say even the StarSat call centre knew nothing about the axed Discovery channels.

On Facebook when StarSat subscriber Daphne Brown asked why StarSat keeps discontinuing channels and if it's because StarTimes is not paying the distributors, StarSat said "it is due to contractual reasons and nothing to do with payment".

Nadia Crowie said "Surely someone should have known earlier, not a few days after debit orders went off and payment made. Even if we were notified, it should have been before debit orders went off or payments were made".

Nduduzo Gape said "I joined StarSat because of those channels. I am giving you one month to resolve this issue else I'm disconnecting".

Subscriber Zanele Ngcongo said "Wow, you guys are not good to your customers. You only tell today but I've noticed on Monday that Real Time was off. You need to change the way you do things".

ALSO READ: Discovery Inc. cuts its Discovery Family channel from StarTimes and StarSat after just 2 years on the air without any explanation and just a month after axing FLN.

ALSO READ: After over a decade on-air in South Africa Discovery Inc. abruptly dumps Fine Living on StarTimes and StarSat without warning or explanation.

Discovery Science on StarSat and StarTimes dropped after 8 years and replaced by Discovery Family; Discovery Networks' new Real Time as a competitor for its own TLC added and branded as 'StarTimes Real Time' although its packaged by Discovery.

The beloved Discovery Science (StarSat 222) channel on StarSat is getting dumped at the end of August and will be replaced by the bland Discovery Family channel from Discovery Networks International already running on MultiChoice's DStv.

Discovery Science is one of three channels from Discovery Networks International that launched on TopTV - StarSat's brand-damaged predecessor - when it started in May 2010, along with Travel & Living that was changed into TLC and then removed, and Investigation Discovery (ID) that's still running along with Discovery Science.

The well-liked Discovery Science is going dark at the end of August on StarTimes Media South Africa and On Digital Media's (ODM) StarSat in South Africa, as well as on StarTimes in all the other African countries where the channel has been available, and will be replaced by the watered-down Discovery Family.

Discovery Communications' Discovery Family channel replaced Discovery World in April 2016 on MultiChoice's DStv with viewers complaining about the old, rerun programming, blandness of the channel and the overload of repeats on Discovery Family.

MultiChoice and Discovery Networks International that dumped Animal Planet at the end of 2017 as part of a new channels carriage renewal contract and with very little notification to DStv subscribers, is still to replace it with a new, as yet unannounced channel within months.

Discovery Networks International in response to a media enquiry from TVwithThinus about the removal of Discovery Science says that "as part of our recent renewal with StarTimes, we will be replacing Discovery Science with Discovery Family later this year".

"Discovery Family has proven particularly successful with South African audiences since launching in 2016, thanks to its quality programming and family-friendly genres including magic, pop-science, clip-based shows and competition formats, and we look forward to expanding the channel's presence across Africa and presenting it to StarTimes subscribers in the coming months."

StarSat subscribers in South Africa are angry, sad and disappointed about the removal of Discovery Science.

StarSat subscribers like Thando Ntabamhlophe said "We demand Discovery Science continues. A favourite channel. Food Factory, documentaries, education. Do not stop Discovery Science!"

"Discovery Science is best. Why can't they add channels without removing any?" asked KD Mzwandile.

Meanwhile StarSat and StarTimes are also adding the StarTimes Real Time (ST Real Time) channel that is actually a Discovery Networks International packaged channel, but strangely branded as "StarTimes" Real Time, instead of just Real Time.

StarTimes Real Time is added on StarTimes/StarSat on channel 179 and is being made available on the Special package, as well as the Super package tiers.

In the public signing ceremonies for its channel carriage agreement renewal contracts that StarTimes held last month in Beijing, China - and that StarTimes and StarSat didn't want to talk about with the South African press - StarTimes revealed to some of Africa's other journalists that Real Time will be coming from Discovery.

Discovery Networks International packages and distributes this new female lifestyle channel as a competitor to its own TLC (DStv 135) brand already carried on MultiChoice's DStv in South Africa and elsewhere across Africa.

Discovery's Real Time that ran in Europe and the United Kingdom was finally shut down there in April 2013 and turned into TLC, but that Real Time name has now been revived by Discovery for StarTimes in Africa as a parallel, yet differently branded, channel to TLC.

The "StarTimes" in front of Real Time is presumably to make a more distinctive break with Discovery so as to not let the very direct competition with TLC, from the same channels group provider, be so obvious.