BREAKING. Hallmark changing to Universal channel: How the new logo and colours came to be.

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The Hallmark channel (DStv 108) will be changing to the Universal Channel on 24 March at 21:00 but still remain on DStv 108 with the same programming. I can now tell you first what went into the new logo design of the Universal Channel, and also a bit more about the wide variety of colours that viewers will be seeing the logo displayed in (on-air as well as the differently coloured promos that will be running on the Universal Channel).

I spoke to John Burnett, vice president  of commercial operations and Universal Networks International's managing director for Africa about the new logo design, the various colours and colour use.

''You'll recognize that the new Universal Channel logo is an evolution of the Universal movie logo that we've worked on with designers to get something that can work in modern television,'' John Burnett told me. ''The use of the Universal name is deliberate after testing all over the world.''

''Here in South Africa we tested the logo of the Universal Channel and the name. Regarding the colours used – you might notice the NBC Universal logo which is a peacock. It employs multi-colour. We wanted to carry that forward into the identity of the Universal Channel. So you will see a lot of colour. You will see more colour than what you used to see on Hallmark. And different colours at different times during the day.''

Universal Channel: ''Extraordinary characters welcome''.

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''Extraordinary characters welcome''. I can exclusively reveal first that ''Extraordinary characters welcome'' will be the brand-new slogan for the Universal Channel (DStv 108).

The Universal Channel will start broadcasting on March 24 at 21:00 when The Hallmark Channel (DStv 108) changes it's name to Universal Channel and starts to use the new slogan for its line-up filled with crime-procedurals and quircky character driven shows such as House M.D, Being Erica and Psych above.

BREAKING. The Hallmark Channel in South Africa changes to the Universal Channel.

You're reading it here first.

The Hallmark Channel (DStv 108) has just announced that it's changing to the Universal Channel from 24 March in a complete rebranding and channel reposisioning strategy - Africa being a world-first.

I thought that this is what would be announced (and which i speculated about RIGHT HERE on 1 February whern I got the invitation).

The Hallmark Channel with 3,7 million viewers will change its name and logo on 24 February at 21:00 but remain on channel 108 on DStv. I've got LOTS of interviews and ALL the news about it (and what it entails) and I'll roll it out over the next couple of days right here.

The rebranding of the brand-new Universal Channel is part of the strategy by Universal Networks International to ''harmonize'' its TV channels under specific brands. Africa is the first market to introduce the new-look channel globally. ''

''This is a natural evolution of the Hallmark channel in Africa,'' says François Roux, managing director, EMEA, Universal Networks International. ''Building on Universal’s entertainment heritage we will continue showing quality content in an engaging TV environment, now emphasized by a modern, colourful channel look and feel.''

''We are very positive about this development of Hallmark channel,'' says Aletta Alberts, MultiChoice head of content. ''We have co-operated closely with Universal Networks International making sure our subscribers benefit from even stronger content delivered under the new Universal Channel name.''