BREAKING. CNBC Africa gives Lerato Mbele a new business show ''Beyond Markets''; shuffles the biz channel's morning line-up from next week.

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CNBC Africa (DStv 410) anchor Lerato Mbele is not anchoring her longtime morning show Business AM this week, but from next week she's getting a new primetime show entitled Beyond Markets that will be rebroadcast in the mornings from 8 June when CNBC Africa shuffles its morning programming line-up.

Lerato Mbele who's been with the biz channel since it started in 2007 will become the anchor of the new Beyond Markets that will go out on weekdays between 20:00 and 21:00 from this coming Monday, 7 June. From this coming Tuesday, Beyond Markets will repeat in the mornings between 06:00 and 07:00 on CNBC Africa. Beyond Markets will be hosted by Lerato Mbele from Johannesburg and Wole Famurewa from Lagos, discussing economic policy, regulation, infrastructure, private sector growth, politics and leadership. ''Beyond Markets will create a context for the more substantial discussions on the causes and effect of business cycles,'' says Lerato Mbele. ''I'm looking forward to dialogue with the vast talent of African intellectuals, entrepreneurs, political leaders and industrial champions.'' Jill de Villiers, CNBC Africa's head of programming says Beyond Markets is ''designed to become a must-watch markets-and-beyond show across the continent''.

CNBC Africa's other morning show Open Exchange is getting restructured as well. It will now start at 08:00 on weekdays with anchors Eleni Giokos, Stephen Gunnion and Alishia Seckam. From 08:00 to 08:30 the focus is on East Africa. The South African market is in the spotlight between 08:30 and 09:30. Street Talk with Alicia Seckham on CNBC Africa changes to Open Exchange West Africa between 09:30 and 10:00 from next week.

BREAKING. Mapule Mabhalati, the SABC's head of radio news resigns unexpectedly; ''retiring from the broadcaster'' at the end of June.

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I usually write about, and focus exclusively on television but this is becoming a massive and major story: The SABC's head of radio news, Mapule Mbhalati has just resigned.
Massive drama is once again engulfing the SABC that's being shaken to its core today by these developments, adding fuel to the new scandal with this sudden resignation of Mapule Mbhalati just after Solly Mokoetle spoke to the SABC news division earlier today and also told them in no uncertain terms that Phil Molefe IS the SABC's new head of news and current affairs. (Phil Molefe has currently been the acting head of news.)

The Communications Workers Union (CWU) just issued a very strongly worded statement regarding Mapule Mbhalati's resignation.  ''We call on the SABC to come clean and explain in details the resignation.''

UPDATE Tuesday 1 June 16:30 - Attempts to reach Mapule Mabhalati has so far proven unsuccessful while the SABC tells me that Mapule Mabhalati was NOT suspended. I'm told she's in meetings until 17:30 when I called her office. The SABC meanwhile called me back. ''I'm sitting with her resignation letter before me,'' Kaizer Kganyago, SABC spokesperson told me minutes ago. ''She resigned today and will leave the SABC from effect 1 July. ''Mapule Mabhalati has send her resignation letter to the head of news, informing the SABC that she's retiring. She has indicated that she is retiring from the SABC.''

ALSO READ: Solly Mokoetle tells shocked SABC news staff that Phil Molefe IS the new permanent head of news.
ALSO READ: SABC board calls ''appointment'' of Phil Molefe as new head of news ''null and void''. 

BREAKING. SABC's Solly Mokoetle tells shocked SABC news staff that Phil Molefe IS the new head of news.

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I can be first to spill that the SABC's group CEO Solly Mokoetle just told a flabbergasted and shocked SABC's news staff that Phil Molefe IS the SABC's news head of news and current affairs, irrespective of what the SABC board may say.

According to shocked insider SABC sources, Solly Mokoetle told them that Phil Molefe (who was ''appointed'' by him after he got his orders from dr. Ben Ngubane - only to have the ''appointment'' declared ''null and void'' by the SABC board) WILL be the one giving them orders, that Phil Molefe IS the new head of news at the SABC, and that nobody else will be allowed to question the appointment.

The SABC spokesperson, Kaizer Kgangayo tells me he knows nothing about the meeting that just took place or what Solly Mokoetle said.

I also just got word of an executive level resignation within the SABC's news department!!!!! More on this within minutes. Here we go again.

ALSO READ: SABC board blasts Ben Ngubane's ''appointment'' of Phil Molefe, calling it ''null and void'' with ''no legal effect''.

BREAKING. DStv silent on whether Kidsco and Afro Music TV channels will be added soon.

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DStv which is most probably adding new TV channels like Kidsco and Afro Music soon, isn't talking although DStv subscribers can now ''stop'' and go to these new channel numbers, although nothing is being broadcast on them (yet).

I told you RIGHT HERE that Mzansi Magic will be located on channel 107 when the new channel starts on July 12 on DStv, but that still leaves channels 326 (most probably the new Afro Music channel), 308 (most probably the new Kidsco channel) and 116 which has to be a general entertainment channel, unexplained. DStv subscribers can now go to all of these channel numbers and get the message ''future channel''. Usually DStv simply skips over channel numbers that don't exist. Not as much as a peep from DStv on any of this, why its now possible to go to these channels and when their broadcasts might become accessible within South Africa.

ALSO READ: Could DStv be adding the BET, Kidsco and Afro Music TV channels for South Africa soon?

FIRST LOOK! SuperSport's newly completed high definition TV studio for the World Cup revealed.

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I can exclusively reveal these new photos of SuperSport's brand-new, high definition (HD) broadcast studio in Randburg from which SuperSport's 2010 FIFA World Cup studio-based coverage will take place.

Construction on the massive TV set in studio 6 at M-Net in Randburg has now been completed and this is how it looks. I can tell you that this new SuperSport studio will also stay up after the end of the World Cup in mid-July, to become SuperSport's permanent new main SuperSport studio.

ALSO READ: First look! How SuperSport's new HD studio for the soccer World Cup will look.
ALSO READ: SuperSport goes glam with its four new daily magazine shows for the World Cup.
ALSO READ: First look! How the SABC's new high gloss set at the SABC Broadcast Centre for the World Cup will look.

For the rest of the photos of SuperSport's new HD studio, click on READ MORE below.

BREAKING. TopTV: ''We have to up our game in terms of content'' says operator after lots of ex-DStv subscribers sign up for new service.

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TopTV says South Africa's new pay TV platform sits with a massive number of ex-DStv, as well as current DStv subscribers, and that TopTV therefore will have to improve and expand its available content.

The new TopTV originally said before and during its launch at the beginning of May that its not competing or looking to compete with its existing South African rival, MultiChoice's DStv - but that was before the massive number of TopTV decoders (currently 70 000) that On Digital Media (ODM) has sold since the beginning of last month.

''Our original target market was people who did not have access to pay TV in South Africa and who's never had M-Net or DStv. That's still our core target market, but a vast number of our new subscribers have now indicated to us that they're ex-DStv subscribers who've cancelled their DStv subscriptions a while ago, or have come over to TopTV,'' says Melinda Connor, TopTV spokesperson. ''We also have a significant number of subscribers who have DStv already and is keeping that, but also want access to TopTV. They simply want both,'' she says.

''Therefore we have to up our game in terms of content and TopTV's content department is very aware of that. A team just went to the Los Angeles screenings to see what hot new shows there are to buy and were sourcing the new, additional TopTV channels that we will be rolling out before the end of the year.'' Melinda Connor says TopTV subscribers can look forward to several new TopTV channels that will be added around September and October, ''most of these channels will be added to the TopTV basic packages.''

FIRST LOOK! MultiChoice lanches a new and cheaper HD PVR 2P DStv decoder in time for the 2010 FIFA World Cup.

This is how MultiChoice's new and cheaper high definition personal video recorder (HD PVR) DStv decoder looks. Its called the HD PVR 2P and MultiChoice is bringing out the HD PVR 2P (cost: R1999,00) to make high definition and the digital recording function available to more subscribers just before the start of the 2010 FIFA World Cup.

The more affordable HD PVR 2P can be used with a normal standard definition (SD) TV set (still giving subscribers access to the digital recording function. DStv subscribers of the DStv Premium bouquet will also be able to use the HD PVR 2P to watch the two SuperSport HD channels as well as Discovery HD Showcase and M-Net HD which are all broadcast in high definition.

BREAKING. M-Net's Idols producers secretly add two more contestants who didn't make the original cut, to get to 100 finalists.

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The producers of the 6th season of Idols on M-Net set to start on 18 July on the pay channel has secretly added two contestants who didn't originally make the cut.

I told you about the original breakdown per city of the latest season of Idols adter the nationwide audition process in which 98 Idols contestants were put through. Now, during the theatre round week, there is suddenly 100 contestants at Sun City where the next round of the hit reality show is being recorded, which begs the question: where did the additional two ''new'' Idols contestants come from?

I have asked yesterday, but M-Net haven't yet responded to my enquiry regarding the two new ''phantom'' Idols contestants.

UPDATE Tuesday 1 June 14:45: M-Net just told me there's definitely just 98 Idols contestants in the theatre round this year and that the ''Top 100'' inserted in an email is an honest mistake.

BREAKING. Mzansi Magic planning a new local, black South African soap that will be the new TV channel's flagship show.

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The new Mzansi Magic (DStv 107) channel that will launch in July on DStv will develop a brand-new local TV soap, geared towards a black viewership, that the channel hopes will become its flagship TV show.

I can tell you that the new local soap will start off with at least 156 half hour episodes. Besides the local soap, Mzansi Magic is looking to create a drama series that will run for half a year with 26 hourlong episodes, a weekly reality show in 13 hourlong episodes, as well as a half hour weekly comedy show with 24 episodes.

ALSO READ: M-Net, MultiChoice launches new TV channel, Mzansi Magic set to start in July.
ALSO READ: M-Net, MultiChoice set to launch a brand new TV channel, most probably called Mzansi Magic.