George R.R. Martin's terrible horror science fiction drama series, Nightflyers, on Netflix and Syfy cancelled after its first season.

The terribly done science fiction series Nightflyers on Netflix and the Syfy channel in the United States, has been cancelled after its first season that was quickly burnt off on the channel in December 2018.

Based on George R.R. Martin's book, the Ireland-produced Nightflyers was a co-production with Netflix having the international rights and NBCUniversal's Syfy having the rights in America.

The horror science fiction series that was slammed with bad reviews followed scientists, a reclusive captain and a telepath on a spaceship, The Nightflyer, on their way to the edge of the solar system to make contact with alien life, when things start to go wrong and malfunction.

The original Nightflyers showrunner, Daniel Cerone left after two months and was replaced by Jeff Buhler as executive producer. Nightflyers was produced by Universal Cable Productions

After its Syfy cancellation, Amazon saves the excellent science fiction drama series, The Expanse, picks it up for season 4.

Amazon has saved the excellent science fiction series, The Expanse, after cancellation by Syfy, picking up the series for a 4th season on Amazon Prime Video for the United States.

The Expanse is currently midway through its 3rd season and was cancelled by the NBCUniversal-owned channel.

Interestingly, for international viewers, including South Africa, The Expanse has been available on Netflix, a rival streaming to Amazon.

It will be interesting to see how the new take-over pick-up deal might impact where future and past seasons become available due to the complex subscription video-on-demand (SVOD) rights.

Time will tell, but it could be that the first 3 seasons of The Expanse remain on Netflix, with further seasons on Amazon Prime Video. It could also be that the first 3 seasons move to Amazon Prime Video as back catalogue together with the new 4th season.

Or it could be that The Expanse simply continues on Netflix internationally and Netflix South Africa, retain the existing 3 seasons and showing the 4th - this being the most likely scenario.

Speaking on Friday at a panel at the National Space Society's conference, Jeff Bezos, Amazon CEO who is a big fan of The Expanse book series, said that Amazon has made a deal to take over the science fiction series for a 4th season.

"I just got word that The Expanse was saved," Jeff Bezos said on Friday evening at the National Space Society's International Space Development Conference in Los Angeles.

The cast and producers of The Expanse team was in the ballroom audience for the Q&A session with Jeff Bezos when he made the announcement that Amazon is taking over the show.

I'll just let him say it...#TheExpanse#RocinanteIsSafe#BreakingNews

Thank you @JeffBezos pic.twitter.com/wxHN31zgJs

— Cas Anvar (@Casanvar) May 26, 2018

"I was talking to the cast half an hour ago, before the break for dinner started. I was telling them that we are working hard at Amazon to save The Expanse but it wasn't a done deal yet."

"During dinner, 10 minutes ago, I just got word that The Expanse is saved," Jeff Bezos said to applause and with the cast members standing up and applauding. "The show is extraordinary and these guys are unbelievably talented".

"We couldn't be more excited that The Expanse is going to continue on Amazon Prime! We are deeply grateful that Jeff Bezos, Jen Salke [new Amazon programming boss], and their team at Amazon have shown such faith in our show," said Alcon Entertainment co-founders and co-CEOs Andrew Kosove and Broderick Johnson who produce the series, in a statement.

"We also want to thank Laura Lancaster, head of Alcon Television for her tireless efforts. We are fully aware that this wouldn't have been possible if it wasn't for the staggering outpouring of support from the most creative, hardest working sci-fi fans around the world."

NBCUniversal's Syfy said it was difficult dumping The Expanse but didn't want it anymore.

"The Expanse transported us across the solar system for three brilliant seasons of television. Everyone at Syfy is a massive fan of the series, and this was an incredibly difficult decision," said Chris McCumber, president of entertainment networks at NBCU Cable Entertainment in a statement announcing the show's cancellation.

"We want to sincerely thank The Expanse’s amazing cast, crew and all the dedicated creatives who helped bring James S. A. Corey's story to life."

After a decade Syfy is finally returning to MultiChoice's DStv - but so far there's a catch to the genre channel's comeback.

Imagine this: After exactly a decade MultiChoice is finally returning the dumped Syfy channel to its DStv satellite pay-TV platform - but apparently only in the rest of Africa and not for DStv subscribers in South Africa. Yet.

The Syfy channel supplied by Universal Networks International (UNI) will be added back to DStv for the first time after it was taken off 10 years ago.

The Syfy channel was formerly known as The Sci Fi Channel until it was rebranded in June 2009 but by then it was already gone for half a decade from DStv.

MultiChoice removed The Sci Fi Channel in 2004 from DStv after several years because the so-called "genre" channel - dedicated to science fiction, fantasy and supernatural series and films - was underperforming.

Now MultiChoice told DStv subscribers elsewhere in Africa that Syfy will be enriching" their viewing experience and calls Syfy "an exciting new channel", saying Syfy "which features science-fiction, drama, supernatural, fantasy, reality, paranormal, wrestling, and horror programming will help enrich" the pay-TV offering.

Syfy will presumably start on DStv, outside of South Africa, on 1 April although the exact starting date is not yet certain.

Syfy, returning this time as a TV channel on one of the DStv add-on packages in Africa, replaces the Sport+ channel on DStv which is ending on 31 March.

MultiChoice has always maintained that Syfy is too niche a TV channel with too few viewers. Yet now Syfy is being added for viewers in African territories where the ratings and interest would presumably be even lower than for South Africa.

Helix

I asked Universal Networks International earlier this week how it feels about the "reintroduction" of Syfy to Africa.

The response was strangely muted, given that UNI is always happy when it introduces further new TV channels like Studio Universal and Telemundo Africa to the African market.

Thursday evening, through its South African PR agency UNI said in response to being asked about Syfy re-entering the African market on MultiChoice's DStv that "while we continuously review opportunities to evolve our channels portfolio in Africa, Universal Networks International has no announcements to make at this time".

I asked MultiChoice earlier this week if it can say why its's not adding Syfy to DStv in South Africa and why it deems the channel not suitable for South Africa.

Thursday evening MultiChoice said "as you are aware, we constantly add new content on DStv. We generally don't comment on our interactions with content providers for new content as these are confidential".

Ascension

With the slowly dying Style from UNI which was abruptly ended last month and finally and unstylishly euthanised, perhaps replacing it with Syfy on DStv is a good idea.

In 2015 so far DStv subscribers in South Africa are down two channels - Style and Blackbelt TV which are gonners.

Zee World was recently added, so with one TV channel less in 2015, the addition of Syfy in the place of Style to even out the score might lessen the pain for DStv subscribers when MultiChoice's upcoming annual price increase comes into effect on 1 April.

Syfy will however face an uphill battle initially anywhere where it is shown together with channels like M-Net and M-Net Edge which are already carried on DStv.

Like A+E Networks UK's Lifetime on DStv and Netflix (when it eventually arrives in South Africa within the next two years) Syfy will initially be a lobotomised, gutted TV channel with very little exclusive or territory first-run content since most of it has already been given away in signed distribution and licensing agreements with other broadcasters and channels.

Shows like Defiance, Dominion, Haven, Alphas, Being Human, Sanctuary, Warehouse 13 and others are all Syfy shows, including movies like the ongoing Sharknado schlock-franchise.

The latest new upcoming seasons of something like Haven on UNI sibling Universal Channel or Defiance on M-Net Edge won't instantly revert to Syfy should that channel start on DStv or On Digital Media's StarSat. Those shows are locked into existing licensing agreements.

There is hope however. Amazing-sounding, brand-new and real science fiction dramas have been announced and are in development which will soon make it to Syfy.

Just before Christmas, Syfy's new boss, Dave Howe, in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, said Syfy's era of "genre-lite" is over and that Syfy is returning to its roots and is tackling genre-heavy smart TV projects.

This new dramatic slate of shows with solid budgets are set to dramatically enhance the channel proposition and content of Syfy which the past few years degenerated into low-budget reality shows and flimsy fare which wasn't really even science fiction (like the new Shark Wranglers on the History channel).

Just take a look at what you're not currently getting to see in terms of new upcoming Syfy shows, as well as some existing Syfy dramas that South African viewers, strangely (no pun intended) have not been seeing - not even on other channels:

The Expanse (upcoming (pictured above) Game of Thrones in space, with a detective and rogue captain racing across the galaxy to solve a conspiracy)
Hackers (upcoming a cyber hacker reality show)
Z Nation (existing the aftermath of a zombie apocalypse like The Walking Dead renewed for a 2nd season)
12 Monkeys (upcoming based on the 1995 virus and time travel movie. This drama will start on M-Net Edge on 16 March at 20:00)
Spin (a mini-series about a young scientists trying to save the world from a mysterious cloud)
Hunters (upcoming a straight-to-series 13 part story about a cop who track a group of alien terrorists)
Childhood's End (upcoming mini-series about invading Earth turning it into a utopia)
Helix (existing which we strangely haven't seen on M-Net about a virus outbreak in an isolated Arctic base filled with conspiracies, renewed for a 2nd season)
Ascension (existing drama aboard a generational space ship from the 1960's now decades into its journey which we haven't yet seen)
The Magicians (upcoming A young man who discovers he's a magician and then attends a college of magic in New York)

Why no Syfy? MultiChoice explains the 6 criteria it looks at when the pay-TV platform looks at possibly adding a new TV channel to the bouquet.

MultiChoice doesn't have any plans to add the Syfy channel from Universal Networks International (UNI) to its DStv satellite pay-TV platform, and is explaining the criteria it looks at when considering the possibility of adding a third-party channel to its channel line-up.

Viewers are constantly clamouring for the Syfy channel but MultiChoice has never brought Syfy back since The Sci-Fi channel - as it was previously known when it was on DStv for years - was removed in 2004.

Renewed resurgent requests for Syfy to be added to DStv as a TV channel filled the TV with Thinus inbox as pay-TV viewers in America and the United Kingdom are able to watch the new science fiction show Defiance - currently watched in 55 countries globally from Canada and Germany to France - but not South Africa.

Since there's no Syfy channel in South Africa, M-Net has picked up the rights to Defiance and plans to show it on M-Net Series (DStv 114), but South African viewers won't see the new drama series and its episodes as concurrently as the rest of the world.

A channel such as Syfy is considered (what the trade calls) "a genre channel", meaning it has a small(er) potential audience.

What science fiction as a genre has however, is an incredibly loyal audience who tune in and remain tuned in, are very vocal, specific and makes them easier to target by marketers and advertisers who know more exactly who they're talking to than with other fare.

MultiChoice says that "at present, we have no plans to add the Syfy channel to the DStv platform".

"MultiChoice continually scans the broadcasting environment for available channels, locally and abroad. We use market research and analysis to determine whether a specific channel will fit into the mix of our channels on various packages."

"Once we have signed agreements with channels in place, we place these into our packages and make the necessary announcements to our customers in the media."

MultiChoice says the satellite pay-TV service has 6 criteria it considers before acquiring a new TV channel: audience, availability, technological feasibility, financial feasibility, available new content time zoning and rights clearances.

"Audience [is determined through] availability as determined through market research; technological feasibility, for instance a channel must be available on a satellite that is correctly positioned to transmit to Randburg; financial feasibility of the channel, the new content available on the channel to avoid an unreasonable amount of duplication of content that is already available on DStv; time zoning of the schedule, and lastly rights clearance must be obtainable for this territory."

BREAKING. A sad sigh for Syfy. Absolutely no Syfy channel for MultiChoice's DStv (although they personally love it).

You're reading it here first.

I can exclusively break the news that the Syfy channel will not be coming to MultiChoice's DStv platform.

MultiChoice has once again recently tested Syfy as a possible new TV channel acquisition for its DStv bouquet, but has decided against it. Although MultiChoice personally likes the Syfy channel, the pay TV platform has no plans on adding Syfy in the foreseeable future. But why?

There's several reasons. Although not stated, it seems as if Syfy  - and I haven't checked with them - insists on a too high channel carriage fee for Syfy. That's what lead to a breakdown in tentative negotiations between On Digital Media's (ODM) TopTV when they wanted to add Syfy as a potential channel before they launched in May this year. Furthermore MultiChoice has (and I don't want to use the word ''problems'') some bandwidth restrictions that will only be eased with new satellites in future. MultiChoice is now very careful about what channels its adding since bandwidth is becoming an issue. MultiChoice also still considers Syfy to be too niche a channel to be successful on DStv, with too few - although ardent - fans.

I do know though that MultiChoice themselves do love the Syfy channel and the transformative content repositioning the channel underwent the past few years when it changed from The Sci-Fi Channel to Syfy. ''Syfy has migrated from little green men to freeing imagination,'' Aletta Alberts, MultiChoice's general manager for content said earlier today when I asked her about the possibility of Syfy being added to DStv. ''Syfy has very, very loyal but niche viewers so when we had to make the decision again it was a no-brainer for us,'' she said. ''Already also a lot of those titles [of Syfy TV shows] do sit in M-Net Action (DStv 106). It's actually maybe up to M-Net Action to make viewers more aware of the big science fiction programming that is on the channel.''

''Adding Syfy . . . it would need the Syfy proposition to be different [because Syfy shows are on other channels already like Haven on The Universal Channel] from the US and UK Syfy channel versions. Then the South African Syfy feed will have to mix second run [shows/show premieres] with first run. If we take the channel in future that would be an issue: how much of the content on the channel is really brand-new to the territory,'' Aletta Alberts said. ''We're not looking at adding Syfy in the short term to DStv but we are keeping our eye on it to see if there is a way that it could grow a broader audience.''

ALSO READ: Is TopTV talking to Universal Networks International for a SECOND time in trying to get the Syfy channel to South Africa?
ALSO READ: Syfy would LOVE to return to South Africa.

BREAKING. Syfy planning to launch in South Africa ''very soon'', but ''conditions have to be right'' says channel distributor.

You're reading it here first.

I can reveal that Syfy (previously known as the The Sci Fi Channel when it was carried on MultiChoice's DStv) plans to launch in South Africa ''very soon''.

I asked and was told that the channel - that was in negotiations with On Digital Media's (ODM) TopTV before it launched in May for a place on the new pay TV operator's bouquet - is indeed looking to make a comeback. ''Our objective is to launch Syfy in South Africa and to do so very soon,'' says Colin McLeod, Universal Networks International managing director.

''Syfy is truly a global brand and the re-branding has broadened [the channel's] appeal to a much wider audience with Syfy-productions like Caprica and Eureka,'' says Colin McLeod. ''So of course there are requests from the market. This is a dynamic market where programme rights are becoming more expensive and harder to access. Of course in any negotiation, fees are a discussion point but only a small part of the deal. We'd love to launch Syfy in Africa but the conditions have to be right.''

ALSO READ: Syfy would love to return to South Africa. Will TopTV or DStv be first in the space race to get the channel back?
ALSO READ: Is TopTV talking to Universal Networks International for a SECOND time in trying to make a deal getting Syfy for South Africa?

SPACE OUT! Syfy would LOVE to return to South Africa. Will DStv or TopTV be first in the new space race to show Syfy some love?

You're reading it here first.

Well Ripley, believe it or not: I can reveal that the Syfy channel would love - let me emphasise that - simply love to be (back) in South Africa.

The only question is: will it be MultiChoice's DStv or On Digital Media (ODM)'s TopTV who will be first in the space race to show Syfy some love and snap up this niche, yet neutron star? DStv unceremoniously jettisoned the Sci Fi Channel in 2004 out the airlock just like Hal tried to do to Bowman in that other odyssey. Then, like a malfunctioning R2 unit, DStv cited low viewership for the Sci Fi Channel's untimely demise, saying that the Sci Fi Channel was just not popular enough, that science fiction as a genre wasn't watched enough in South Africa and that the channel was just too niche. Well. Sadly that Jedi mind trick worked but the last time I checked that movie with flying dragons and blue people (and I'm not talking the new Smurfs) is very popular. Perhaps its high time that DStv or TopTV reopen 'em pod bay doors, Hal!

I asked Universal Networks International that operates several channels - also Syfy (the Sci Fi Channel has since been renamed) - about their expansion plans in South Africa. The answer was quite revealing and interesting - indicating that Universal Networks International would love to bring Syfy back. 

''We recently launched The Universal Channel with DStv,'' Colin McLeod, managing director CEE & BNA for Universal Networks International answered me. ''This was a resounding success and we're looking forward to launching more channels with DStv and in the region.'' Colin McLeod notes that Universal Networks International currently manage a portfolio of channels that's not yet available in South Africa, ''including Syfy, Studio Universal and 13th Street''. ''We'd welcome the opportunity to launch those channels,'' says Colin McLeod, adding: ''Africa has rapidly become a dynamic and exciting multi-channel market for Universal Networks International and we'll consider further local investment as our commitments to the region grow.''

For added perspective on this, keep in mind that MultiChoice also carried out a little known survey earlier the year to test how viewers would feel about a possible science fiction channel. With MultiChoice's new viewership measuring tool DStv-i even a channel such as Syfy with a small but dedicated and devoted audience and following would now be able to be measured and quantified for advertisers - something that wasn't possible even a year ago. Should Syfy make a return back to the future in South Africa, the channel - fondly remembered by viewers - will also garner new fans who would be, well, just over the moon.