Zambia's censorship broadcasting regulator, IBA, bans Prime TV for a month for doing critical reporting of authoritarian president Edgar Lungu's government.

Zambia's censorship broadcasting regulator, the Independent Broadcasting Authority (IBA) has banned and shut down the Prime TV channel for a month that has been critical of Zambia's government.

The decision by the Zambian government and its censorship body comes a few weeks after the IBA ordered the apparently "gay" show Lusaka Hustle off the air in February 2019 and ordered MultiChoice Zambia and M-Net's Zambezi magic (DStv 160) channel to censor it.

Lusaka Hustle returned to the Zambezi Magic schedule after the censorship regulator couldn't specify and didn't want to say exactly what was wrong and triggered the original ban.

Last month a high-ranking Zambian police official threatened a Prime TV news presenter.

Prime TV - started 7 years ago by a former cameraman at Zambia's state broadcaster, the Zambia National Broadcasting Corporation (ZNBC) - has publicly exposed corruption and done critical reporting of authoritarian president Edgar Lungu's government.

"The Independent Broadcasting Authority (IBA) resolved to suspend the license with immediate effect for 30 days," Josephine Mapoma, IBA board secretary doing the Zambian government's bidding said at Lusaka news conference on Monday morning.

"During the suspension period the station is expected to conduct in-house training in basic journalism, ethics and news script writing," said Josephine Mapoma.

Josephine Mapoma claimed that Prime TV was doing "unbalanced coverage, opinionated news, material likely to incite violence and use of derogatory language" without giving any evidence or explaining the IBA and Zambia's clampdown on what's left of freedom of speech in the Southern African country. 

Zambia's censorship tsar, the Ministry of Information permanent secretary, Chanda Kasolo, hilariously claimed that in the censorship of Prime TV "there was no political interference involved and that the decision comes after thorough consultations and engagements with other stakeholders".

The censorship of Prime TV comes after Davis Mwila, secretary-general of Zambia's ruling Patriotic Front who also recently banned Prime TV from press conferences, complained to the censorship body about Prime TV's alleged "biased coverage and unethical reporting of political opinions and beliefs disguised as news".

Gerald Shawa, Prime TV director, says Zambia's censorship shop shut down Prime TV without giving the TV channel a hearing or a right of reply first. Prime TV employs more than 60 journalists and support staff.

Besides Prime TV, Zambia's IBA also abruptly censored and took Valley FM Radio off the air for 2 months, for allegedly unspecified "unprofessional conduct" and failing to "balance and moderate a discussion programme" and revoked the licences of the Ngoma and Kafue radio stations.

Zambia's Non-governmental Gender Organisations Coordinating Council (NGOCC) in a statement demanded that Prime TV's censorship be stopped and the TV channel be returned to air, saying "the decision by the IBA is not only ultra vires the republican constitution, but is also draconian and reminiscent of totalitarian regimes".

"It is NGOCC's considered view that the suspension appears to be intended to intimidate and muzzle the media to instil fear in terms of independent and unbiased reporting."

"We demand that the IBA should immediately lift the ban and allow Prime Television to operate freely."

SuperSport appoints Vision View from South Africa to now handle all the outside broadcasts and provide the live feeds of the Zambian Football League in Zambia.

This report has been edited and changed from its first, original version, please see the end of the article:

SuperSport has entered into a partnership with the production company Vision View in South Africa to now do the outside broadcasts of Zambian Football League matches in Zambia.

While MultiChoice will still show Zambian Football League action to DStv subscribers, SuperSport has outsourced all the live league coverage of its outside broadcasts to Vision View.

In South Africa controversy swirls around a contract between the South African public broadcaster and Vision View.

It is one of several contracts entered into between the SABC and various different companies that were set aside by the Special Investigating Unit (SIU) in late-2018 due to the SABC not having followed its own procurement policy.

The legitimate tender was for refurbishing of SABC studios that was abruptly cancelled by the SABC and awarded to Vision View. The SIU is continuing a wide-ranging investigation into looting and corruption within the SABC.

Now SuperSport has teamed up with Vision View to handle its Zambian Football League outside broadcasts in Zambia, with the technical component of its outside broadcasts that will be now be done by Vision View.

"The Zambian Football League will still be broadcast on SuperSport and the partnership between SuperSport and the Zambian Football Association remains, however we now just have a new outside broadcast partner that will be responsible for the actual live feed. This will have no impact on league fans' viewing at all," says Gideon Khobane, SuperSport CEO.

For SuperSport's live feeds Vision View will use its 4 outside broadcast vans that can accommodate between 6 and 24 cameras. The vans have previously been used to broadcast live Currie Cup, PSL, Varsity Cup and MultiChoice Diski Challenge matches in South Africa, as well as for international cricket coverage in the SADC region.

MultiChoice says that working with Vision View "reflects MultiChoice's ambition to constantly partner with African enterprises in bringing its world-class content to Africa while engaging and uplifting local communities".

SuperSport is also donating TV production equipment to the MultiChoice Talent Factory (MTF) initiative for use by its emerging filmmakers.


UPDATE: Friday 18 January 2019 21:30 - erratum and correction:

Please note that this report was edited and both the third and fourth sentences changed from the first, original version; together with the word "controversial" that was removed from inside the original headline.

The third sentence originally read: "In South Africa controversy swirls around a dodgy contract ..." The word "dodgy" was deleted.

The fourth sentence was reworded to make it clear that the court found that it was the SABC that didn't follow its own procurement policy.

TVwithThinus apologises for the possible and unintended misinterpretation of meaning that unintended lapses in the original version caused and/or might have caused, as well as for not being specifically clear enough during providing background in the article that the Special Investigating Unit (SIU) set aside a contract due to the SABC that deviated from its own procurement policy.

China's StarTimes officially takes over Zambia's national broadcaster, ZNBC, through a shocking merger between Hantex and ZNBC as part of the country's DTT joint venture, Top Star.

China's pay-TV operator StarTimes has officially taken over Zambia's ZNBC through a shocking merger of the country's digital TV joint venture known as Top Star.

ZNBC and Hantex International Corporation Limited - controlled by Startimes International Holdings Limited - formed a joint venture for digital terrestrial television in Zambia, called Top Star.

ZNBC has a 40% share in Top Star while StarTimes as a private company holds 60% in the venture that is supposed to be about public broadcasting.

An application was made on 20 June 2018 for the merger of this joint venture, effectively fusing a crucial public interest aspect of Zambia's digital terrestrial television between ZNBC and Hantex.

Top Star controls distribution of Zambia's digital TV signals, in what critics and TV industry observers have slammed as a seemingly corrupt government move; an obtuse operation that has infuriated the country's local TV industry.

The shocking Chinese takeover is part of a larger plan by StarTimes, operating across Africa as a commercially driven private company, to "help" the national public broadcasters in 20 African countries with their switch from analogue to digital terrestrial television (DTT) - often in dubious government deals and transactions with little scrutiny and transparency.

These StarTimes and local government public broadcasting deals are usually funded and funneled through setting up so-called joint ventures" funded by loans to the local African governments and their broadcasters from the Export-Import Bank of China.

In another 25 African countries StarTimes says it is helping with a joint project from StarTimes and the Chinese government to bring satellite TV and DTT - but with StarTimes content - to "10 000 villages in Africa".

In Ghana the issue recently blew up and got massive media attention when Ghana's local independent broadcaster's association highlighted how Ghana's switch to DTT has been allegedly hijacked, and how untransparent and apparently corrupt it is.

In Zambia, shareholding in ZNBC would only be relinquished upon full payment of a massive loan of over $400 million, according to one of the conditions of the merger.

Zambia's CCPC said its not true that the $400 million Chinese loan would take 25 years to repay, and claims that it will be repaid in 13 years.

Zambia's Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (CCPC) announced the merger, that effectively means that China has taken over the running of ZNBC.

In a statement from the CCPC and signed by CCPC board chairperson Kelvin Bwalya Fube, the CCPC said that it has "granted a conditional authorisation to the proposed merger between Zambia National Broadcasting Corporation (ZNBC) and Hantex International Holdings Limited (StarTimes International)".

In justifying granting the merger, Zambia's CCPC says "there is no law on digital migration", and that the Zambia government has obtained a loan for the implementation of DTT migration that has to be repaid.

The CCPC also states that "Top Star shall perform the functions of the public signal distributor, while ZNBC shall perform the subscriber management services and content provision services."

It's not clear why Zambia's national broadcaster is merging with a commercial, private pay-TV company, and it's not clear why a national, supposedly public broadcaster is performing "subscriber management services".


Chinese loan should be repaid in 13 years, not 25
Meanwhile ZNBC on Saturday said Zambia's national broadcaster remains owned by "citizens".

Mulenga Kapwepwe, ZNBC board chairperson, says the ZNBC can't be sold or taken over without the approval of Zambia's parliament.

Mulenga Kapwepwe says the ZNBC retains full operational and ownership autonomy.

"The statement by CCPC must be taken in context of ZNBC and StarTimes coming together to create a joint venture company called Topstar Communications Limited, says Mulenga Kapwepwe.

According to Mulenga Kapwepwe, the ZNBC has "similar joint ventures" with MultiChoice Africa with MultiChoice and the ZNBC that created MultiChoice Zambia Limited, GOtv Broadcasting Limited and GOtv Zambia.

In a press briefing later on Saturday Kelvin Bwalya Fube, said that ZNBC hasn't been sold.

"When the signal and the content are controlled by one independent person, in this case the JV Top Star, we realized that there was going to be dominance of position on the market by Top Star."

"So as a board, we decided to split [it so] that the signal and distribution of the signal will be done by the JV Top Star."

"The content on the other hand will be controlled by ZNBC. This to us also raised public interest or security issues on the basis that ZNBC from inception has already enjoyed this monopoly of controlling as a public broadcaster."

He said that "this loan repayment can be given back before the 25 years" and that "this loan from our calculations can be paid not later than 13 years".

DAILY TV NEWS ROUND-UP. Today's interesting TV stories to read from TVwithThinus - 15 February 2017.

Here's the latest news about TV that I read, and that you should too:


■ The champagne is flowing (again) at the SABC.
The cash-strapped and loss-making SABC is again popping - and paying for - expensive Veuve Clicquot and Night Nectar Krone.

- The SABC1 event where it happened was filled with hiccups; media were milling about not knowing what to do for hours. Despite the SABC's champagne culture, no reports from media of what SABC executives actually said. TVwithThinus has a report.


■ Parliament slams acting SABC CEO James Aguma and SABC spokesperson Kaizer Kganyago.
Parliament says there seems to be no good faith from James Aguma and Kaizer Kganyago - "they treat this committee with contempt". Parliament asked "Why should James Aguma and Kaizer Kganyago make such terrible decisions on behalf of the SABC?"


■ Science fiction series The Expanse isn't just great TV - it's transforming TV.
Like Game of Thrones on M-Net Edge and A Series of Unfortunate Events on Netflix based on books and having the author involved and part of the writing team, The Expanse is now part of growing the trend of making television based on books better by consulting the original writer.


 ■ First look at the second season of the BBC's Top Gear has viewers divided.
After yet another shake-up of the presenters of the British magazine car show, viewers are wondering if Matt LeBlanc, Chris Harris and Rory Reid will work and gel this time.

■ "Please tell me that is not your penis".
New Zealand TV soap Shortland Street ended with this cliffhanger at the end of Friday's episode.

■ Zambia's government keeps saying ZNBC hasn't been bought by the Chinese.
While China's StarTimes took 60% shareholding in the digital terrestrial television (DTT) venture of Zambia's state-run broadcaster. Zambian government spin tsar foams at the mouth and blames the media for lies about the private take-over deal of the country's national broadcaster.

■ Indian films can again be shown in Pakistan on private pay-TV channels.
After a Pakistan court overturns a ban.

■ Canadian film and TV producers are worried ...
that government regulations about local Canadian content and productions could be eased, leading to an influx of more American talent into Canada's series and films.

■ Venezuela blocks out and censors a Hugo Chavez TV series.
Biographical show blacked out across the country because Venezuela can't "risk losing years of indoctrination of the people by allowing them to watch the show".


■ Deborah Turness is out as president of NBC News
Replaced by Noah Oppenheim. Deborah Turness will be placed in charge of creating the new NBC News International news channel out of euronews as a new rival for CNN International (DStv 401). euronews is going to be renamed euronews NBC.
euronews NBC has a long way to go before it can be and compete with CNN International and BBC World News.


■ Efe Obioma quits after 3 years as GOtv Nigeria's PR manager.
Where will the MultiChoice marketing executive resurface?


■ Lovely long read: The Apprentice at the Donald Trump White House - "whose up, whose down?"
South African viewers can't see Saturday Night Live (SNL) that used to be on Comedy Central (DStv 122) but that neither Comedy Central in Africa or CNBC Africa (DStv 410) are interested in showing.

With it's best (meaning funniest) season in years - and SNL ratings also the highest in years thanks to Alec Baldwin and Melissa McCarthy - Donald Trump is very upset with the portrayal of Stephen K. Bannon as the Grim Reaper.

Donald Trump's White House staffers are constantly secretly buzzing about "who is up and who is down" and the unflattering portrayals on Saturday Night Live.


■ John Oliver (jokingly) blames Oprah for Donald Trump.
Because he thought he was powerful, he became powerful, just like when Oprah told people lectured people on the book The Secret.

■ See the BBC's Planet Earth II in glorious 4K ...
... if you're in America. In South Africa the best you can see the natural history series on BBC Earth (DStv 184) is maximum 1080i.

■ Britshow looking for naked TV contestants.
In the Naked Attraction dating game show, contestants appear naked full frontal and people are picked by potential lovers based on their naked bodies.

■ Netflix is making its own Game of Thrones.
The new animated series is based on the Castlevania game show.

■ Facebook is coming to TV.
Will launch a stand-alone app soon for Apple TV, Samsung's Smart TV and Amazon Fire TV.

■ Wendy Williams on BET (DStv 129) says she doesn't care if celebrities like her.
Keeps bringing heat to daytime TV with her no-prisoners approach to celebrity culture commentary.

China's StarTimes, in controversial deal for digital terrestrial television (DTT), has apparently in essence taken over Zambia's public broadcaster.

In a shocking move it appears that China's StarTimes pay-TV operator has in essence taken over control of Zambia's public broadcaster, the Zambian National Broadcasting Corporation (ZNBC).

In a non-transparent joint venture that hands over control of public broadcasting in Zambia to China's StarTimes for a mind-boggling 25 years, StarTimes has the controlling share while ZNBC only has a 40% stake.

The contract - worth $271 million - is based around Zambia's long-delayed roll-out of digital terrestrial television (DTT) and doesn't appear to have followed due diligence public procurement processes.

In September 2013 the Zambian government awarded a DTT tender to StarTimes which was cancelled due to irregularities in the awarding of the contract by Zambia's Ministry of Information and Broadcasting Services.

Fast forward three years and the contract that's now an even better deal for StarTimes has again been awarded to StarTimes, despite Zambia's Public Procurement Authority that found that due process wasn't followed.

According to Zambian Watchdog "the fact that the government is handing control of its national broadcaster to a foreign company is not only detrimental to the sovereignty of the Zambian nation, it is highly likely to have a negative impact on the economy as a result of possible tax exemptions, access to free ZNBC land and take away jobs from local Zambians under the guise that they don't yet have the skills to manage such a large and highly technical business".

According to Zambian Watchdog, the shocking StarTimes deal also appears to "exclude all other players from the market, as they insist on having exclusive control of the sale, distribution and marketing of all DTT products countrywide".

This kills of any potential growth in the television and film sector which normally thrives during the digital migration with new players entering the market in a bid to tap into the sales, distribution and marketing opportunities.

Besides Zambia, China's StarTimes in Africa is mired in controversy and scandals in countries like Ghana and Malawi.