Why the gay-focused channel OUTtv on DStv will only be made available in South Africa and not the rest of Africa; while MultiChoice says age restrictions will be show specific.

The gay-focused OUTtv channel will only be available in South Africa and nowhere else in Africa where organised opposition and resistance to the broadcast of "pro-gay" television content the past few years have landed Naspers' MultiChoice pay-TV arm and channel distributors in hot water with the rest of the continent's censorship board and regulators.

MultiChoice told TVwithThinus in response to a media enquiry asking why OUTtv will only be available to DStv Premium and DStv Compact Plus in South Africa specifically, that MultiChoice only cleared the content rights of the gay programming for this specific market.  

OUTtv will run from 4 October to 4 November in South Africa as a month-long pop-up channel on channel 198 on DStv with content deemed too risque for the rest of Africa's conservative audiences, especially Nigeria and Kenya as the continent's second and third largest pay-TV markets after South Africa.

OUTtv will broadcast programming ranging from movies, drama, lifestyle, comedy, reality, music and travel shows that appeal to the LGBTQI+ community.

Titles on OUTtv will range from RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars, Big Freedia Queen of Bounce, Australian series like Deep Water and Wentworth, Degrassi: Next Generation and Hey Qween!, as well as OUTtv original series Knock Knock Ghost, Sex & Violence, Shadowlands, The Boulet Brothers’ Dragula and Don’t Quit Your Gay Job.

MultiChoice was asked whether OUTtv will come with a general age restriction, like for instance 13PG, but the pay-TV operator says OUTtv is structured and programmed as a lifestyle channel and that the channel's gay content won't carry any overall age blocking in South Africa.

"There will be no channel age restriction. Any age restrictions will be programme specific," on OUTtv says MultiChoice.

In June 2017 Kenya's Film Classification Board (KFCB) banned 7 kids cartoon for bogus reasons like saying one character "has a dick for a head", and that two characters who went on an (unseen) "implied romantic vacation", ordering MultiChoice Africa to remove Loud House, The Legend of Korra, Hey Arnold, Clarence, Steven Universe, Adventure Time and Star vs the Forces of Evil from DStv because of "homosexual themes".

Since the channels - Viacom Africa's Nickelodeon, Disney's Disney XD and Turner Broadcasting's Cartoon Network - have only one channel feed into the continent, it meant that the removal of the shows for the Kenyan market meant its removal for all of Africa.

In November 2017 Kenya banned the Disney Channel show Andi Mack because it featured a gay teenager, keeping it off television for the entire Africa, including South Africa.

In July 2016 Viacom International Media Networks Africa said it is censoring an episode of The Loud House on Nickelodeon and won't be broadcasting it on its channel on DStv in Africa since it featured animated gay dads.

In May 2016 NBCUniversal International Networks was forced to pull the second season of I Am Cait, a reality show about the transgender Caitlyn Jenner – formerly known as Bruce Jenner - from E! Entertainment making it unavailable for the entire Africa and South Africa, after complaints and a DStv TV-ban in Nigeria.

In October 2015 Discovery Networks International was forced to censor and remove the transgendered teen docu-series I Am Jazz from TLC Entertainment from the channel carried on DStv across the entire Africa just before it was to begin broadcast, following censorship in Nigeria.

M-Net (DStv 101) that does have different regionalised channel feeds for South, East and West Africa has been self-censoring its East and West channel feeds for M-Net's more conservative audiences where shows like American Gods has been substituted and not been shown, and with something like the the transsexual model agency reality show, Strut on its version of the VUZU AMP channel outside of South Africa that got replaced with other programming.

TRACE Southern Africa ups Valentine Gaudin-Muteba to managing director to replace Leo Manne joining Net#work BBDO.

TRACE has upped Valentine Gaudin-Muteba who has been appointed as managing director for media, sales and operations at TRACE Southern Africa.

Her promotion follows Leo Manne's exit who quit to head up the creative ad agency Net#work BBDO as its new managing director.

Leo Manne, a former SABC executive, joined TRACE in May 2015 where he's been the past three years.

TRACE's channels are available on MultiChoice's DStv, Cell C's black subscription video-on-demand (SVOD) service, and eMedia Investment's Openview that carries Trace Sport Stars.

Valentine Gaudin-Muteba was TRACE Southern Africa's managing director in its Johannesburg office between September 2014 and July 2016 and was then promoted to vice president of channels and operations the past two years. 

From France, she's been living in South Africa the past 11 years.

TRACE says in her new role Valentine Gaudin-Muteba will be "responsible for ensuring that TRACE remains a relevant mouthpiece for the expression of Afro Urban talent across its many business verticals".

Olivier Laouchez, TRACE group executive chairperson, will continue as the Southern Africa CEO, based in South Africa.

New historical drama series, Project Blue Book, from A+E Networks will follow Dr. J. Allen Hynek who researched UFO's for the US Air Force during the 1950s.

Ancient Aliens on History (DStv 186)? Try some more recent ones. A+E Networks will launch its new scripted project Project Blue Book on History in a few month's time but there's no word yet on whether the new drama series will be shown on History (DStv 186) on MultiChoice's DStv in South Africa and Africa.

Project Blue Book, developed through A+E Studios, with Robert Zemeckis as executive producer, will have a first season of 10 episodes with the title alluding to the top secret investigations into Unidentified Flying Objects (UFOs) and related phenomena conducted by the United States Air Force between 1952 and 1969.

Aiden Gillen is Dr. J. Allen Hynek; Michael Malarkey is Captain Michael Quinn and Laura Mennell is Mimi Hynek in the series produced in association with Compari Entertainment, a division of ImageMovers.

David O’Leary is the creator, co-executive producer and writer, with Arturo Interian as the executive producer for History.

Project Blue Book is inspired by the personal experiences of Dr. J. Allen Hynek, a brilliant college professor recruited by the US Air Force to spearhead this clandestine operation that researched thousands of cases, over 700 of which remain unsolved to this day. Each of the 10 episodes will draw from the actual case files.

"Project Blue Book is the latest premium scripted content developed and produced through our own A+E Studios, driving the company’s continued expansion in the scripted space for all of our clients in both SVOD and linear," says Sean Cohan, president of international and digital media at A+E Networks, in a statement.

"We are thrilled to be working with this talented team in front of and behind the camera, especially under the auspices of visionary executive producer, Robert Zemeckis."

'People are very, very worried in this building': SABC won't give any guarantee that almost 4 000 staffers at cash-strapped South African public broadcaster won't face job cuts.

The SABC on Wednesday morning said that it can't and won't give any guarantee that the cash-strapped South African public broadcaster won't face dramatic job cuts to it's almost 4 000 heavy work force at the commercially insolvent institution.

Bongumusa Makhathini, SABC chairperson on SABC2's Morning Live programme on Wednesday said SABC staffers are not the target but admitted that the broadcaster's labour cost is too high and that the SABC is not just targeting personnel numbers but at reducing every cost line at the SABC.

It comes after the SABC let go of the fixed-contract and freelance workers at the end of August who were working on the SABC News (DStv 404) channel and who were told on Friday to clear out their desks when their contracts were not renewed.

Longtime staffers and producers who have been with SABC News since the channel's start-up five years ago got axed although the SABC renewed its controversial multi-million rand channel carriage with Naspers' MultiChoice to continue carrying the news channel on DStv for the next few years.

Around 3 000 of the SABC's staff headcount are permanent employees, while the rest are fixed-term and freelance workers.

A staggering amount of the SABC's expenditure goes to just paying staffers, although just 60% are directly involved in programming. The SABC is supposed to spend the bulk of its money on creating and broadcasting content.

The SABC's current wage bill is R3.1 billion for an organisation operating at R7 billion.

Leanne Manas on Wednesday told viewers "the Special Investigative Unit (SIU) identified R428 million in irregular expenditure incurred by the organisation during the time of COO Hlaudi Motsoeneng. How are we going to recover that money?"

She then said "if you look at the money of R428 million and the SABC incurring losses of R622 million - there is the money! And these are the job losses we're talking about."

"People are very, very worried in this building because a lot of contracts came to an end at the end of August because they haven't been resigned. And I know you say they're contracts but these are some people who have been working in the organisation for years - and now they're jobless," said Leanne Manas.

The SABC is reportedly looking at drastically shedding another 800 jobs to try and reduce the staggering wage bill of the public broadcaster that the Auditor-General (AG), Kimi Makwetu, on Monday described as "commercially insolvent".

The SABC yet again posted another annual loss of R622 million for the financial year until the end of March 2018 with the AG saying he can't say whether the SABC remains a going concern.

"We have to cut costs. It doesn't matter how much money we get injected in. We've got to cut cost, said Bongumusa Makhathini. "If you look at our labour cost for example, and other costs, they're too high to sustain and to lead to a viable SABC".

Bongumusa Makhathini said "when you look at labour cost and your needs of the business, we need to look at where broadcasting is going. And we've got to leverage and adopt some new, innovative ways of doing things".

"I cannot come here and confirm that contracts will be renewed without looking at what the operational model that we are adopting, without looking at the realities we are faced with. We cannot have a situation where we allow cost to escalate. We've got to get out cost down. And if it means optimising how we work, looking at our operational model, that's what we'll do."

"I don't want employees to feel that they are the target. We are targeting every cost line."

On Monday morning in a memo TVwithThinus saw, SABC staffers were told that the trade union Bemawu has noted with concern sources talking about the allegedly planned 800 staff cuts, saying "we believe not only legally, but also morally, the SABC was obliged to inform us that they contemplate cutting at least 800 jobs".

"We have seeked urgent legal advice and possible intervention to ensure your rights will be protected at all times. The process seems to be advanced if a number of at least 800 jobs have been decided on, unless the SABC arbitrarily decided to simply cut a number of jobs."

"We do not believe the SABC would be able to function at all with 800 people less, as currently we have a shortage of staff in many areas. Be assured Bemawu will vehemently fight any job cuts at the SABC."

M-Net to broadcast the 70th Primetime Emmy Awards on Tuesday 18 September as a live broadcast from the United States at 02:00 with a primetime showing later the same night at 21:00.

M-Net (DStv 101) will broadcast the 70th Primetime Emmy Awards live on Tuesday 18 September at 02:00 in South Africa and across Africa and again as a primetime awards show special on the same day at 21:00.

M-Net's line-up for the evening of Tuesday 18 September will change with The Blacklist, Animal Kingdom and Strike Back that will be pre-empted to accommodate the Emmys.

The hosts for the 70th Primetime Emmy Awards are Saturday Night Live's Colin Jost and Michael Che.

"In the oustanding drama series category, The Americans, Game of Thrones, The Handmaid's Tale, This is Us and Westworld are dominating the nominations slate, and as always, M-Net has brought you these acclaimed series first," says M-Net in a statement.

"The most nominations went to fan favourite Game of Thrones with 22 mentions across all categories, and Westworld came in second place with a close 21 nominations," says M-Net.


ALSO READ: Netflix stuns as it passes HBO with the most Emmy nominations for the 70th Primetime Emmy Awards, although the winner remains M-Net.

New Law & Order drama procedural, Law & Order: Hate Crimes, ordered straight-to-series for a 13 episode first season.

The long-running Law & Order procedural drama series franchise got a straight-to-series order for a 13 episode first season that will run on America's NBC network.

Law & Order: Hate Crimes from creator and producer Dick Wolf, was co-created by Warren Leight and will be based on New York's real-life Hate Crimes Task Force.

Law & Order: Hate Crimes will be the 7th series in the Law & Order franchise with only Law & Order Special Victims Unit, abbreviated as Law & Order; SVU, still running.

The special unit will be introduced during the second half of the 20th season of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit.

"Law & Order: Hate Crimes is set in New York City, where crimes motivated by discrimination are vigorously investigated by an elite, specially trained team of investigators. Going behind the headlines and viral videos, these diverse, dedicated and passionate detectives will stop at nothing to bring these criminals to justice," says the show according to the press release.

"As with all of my crime shows, I want to depict what’s really going on in our cities and shine a light on the wide-ranging victims and show that justice can prevail," says Dick Wolf in a statement.

"Twenty years ago when SVU began, very few people felt comfortable coming forward and reporting these crimes, but when you bring the stories into people's living rooms – with characters as empathetic as Olivia Benson – a real dialogue can begin. That’s what I hope we can do with this new show in a world where hate crimes have reached an egregious level."

Peter Jankowski and Arthur Forney will also serve as executive producers.

"As Law & Order: SVU enters its remarkable 20th season, it is exciting to get back into business with Dick Wolf on a new Law & Order incarnation that feels extremely timely," says Lisa Katz, co-president of scripted programming at NBC Entertainment, in the statement.

"Considering that last year there was a double-digit rise in hate crimes in our 10 largest cities - the highest total in over a decade - it seemed like this topic is begging to be explored."

Henry Cavill cast in lead role of monster hunter Geralt of Rivia in straight-to-series Netflix fantasy drama, The Witcher.

Henry Cavill has been cast as the lead character in the straight-to-series Netflix drama, The Witcher that will have a first season of 8 episodes.

The Witcher is based on the bestselling fantasy book series from the Polish author Andrzej Sapkowski.

Henry Cavill will appear as Geralt of Rivia, a solitary monster hunter who lives in a world where the people around him are often more vicious than the monsters he hunt.

His path eventually crosses with a powerful sorceress and a young princess with a dangerous secret, and together the three must learn to navigate the increasingly volatile Continent together

Lauren Schmidt Hissrich will be showrunner and executive producer alongside Alik Sakharov.

Andrzej Sapkowski's 8 novels and story collections are collectively known as The Witcher saga and has been translated in to more than 20 languages and have since been turned into a video game franchise.

The Witcher marks Henry Cavill's return to television since his appearance in The Tudors that was broadcast on M-Net (DStv 101) after which he switched television for film.

BREAKING. SABC gets another R1.2 billion bailout in the form of the government allowing the commercially insolvent public broadcaster to raise its credit extension cap; producers, Sentech and Safa to be paid urgently.

The commercially insolvent SABC is being given another government bailout of R1.2 billion in the form of the South African government's National Treasury allowing the beleaguered South African public broadcaster, once again hovering on the brink of financial collapse, to increase its credit extension cap.

Independent South African producers, signal distributor Sentech, the South African Football Association (Safa) and a litany of other service providers are collectively owed hundreds of millions of rands by the SABC and will be paid urgently using the money from the enlarged loan extension.

Nomvula Mokonyane, South Africa's minister of communications, revealed in parliament that the SABC is being granted another R1.2 billion bailout, following its bailout of R1.47 billion 2009 in the form of a government-guaranteed loan from Nedbank.

The government is again bailing out the SABC which cannot find anybody to lend it money and that and once again posted its 8th consecutive, annual loss of R622 million for the financial year until the end of March 2018.

The South African government and taxpayers become responsible and carries the burden should the SABC default on the R1.2 billion credit extension.

Nomvula Mokonyane blamed unspecified "historical challenges" for the SABC's financial woes, instead of corruption, mismanagement and a lack of governance, saying "even the Auditor-General has alluded to because the primary challenges of the SABC have to do with historical debt, the commitments that have been made, and of importance issues around content, and quality of that particular content."

Nomvula Mokonyane, speaking in parliament said "as of a day ago, National Treasury has granted consent for the SABC to increase its borrowing limit from the capital markets in line with the public finance management act, and the broadcasting act".

She said "the SABC has been given borrowing powers and a borrowing limit of up to R1.2 billion by National Treasury".

Nomvula Mokonyane said "at this stage the SABC board and management have assured that employees of the broadcaster will continue to receive their salaries as per the norm with without prejudice. Equally suppliers owed by the broadcaster have been in engagements with the SABC and there's been progress in effecting payments to creditors".

"Monies raised through the process consented to by National Treasury will also be used to pay creditors including independent producers, Sentech and the South African Football Association".

"We are quite confident that in line with the payment plan that the SABC has put together, we'll be able to attend to these issues."

"Secondly these funds will be utilised to acquire new content to replenish the current content offering, so as to attract new audiences that's generating commercial renevues, but also bring back home those that have walked away from the SABC."

"As a responsible government we will not allow the SABC to collapse and are committed to providing the SABC board and management with our continued support to ensure that this national asset continues to serve millions of South Africans with knowledge and entertainment".

Nomvula Mokonyane said "working through with the minister of finance we have been able to give the necessary support for the SABC to have an increased borrowing limit".

26-year old virgin Colton Underwood announced as America's next The Bachelor.

America's ABC TV network has announced the 26-year old virgin, Colton Underwood as the next star of The Bachelor.

Colton Underwood, a former NFL player, awkwardly revealed to Becca Kufrin in the recently concluded season of The Bachelorette that he has never had sex before after which she left their romantic dinner date table and never returned. He ended third in the season.

During the midway "Men Tell All" episode, he became emotional and started crying, saying he was scared of making it public because he felt that people would think he's "less of a man" because he's still a virgin.

He told The Hollywood Reporter that "it was something that I hid and I lied about it a lot growing up in high school and in college due to sports".

"Just because you’re a virgin doesn’t mean you aren’t experienced in some way, and I know this is awkward to even talk about, but if people want talk about virginity, it’s not something where it’s like, ‘Oh, Keep your clothes on at all times.’ You can still be romantic, you can still be sexual and you can still be intimate in that part of the relationship."

Now he will get a chance to choose a possible wife with his virginity as the first virgin bachelor on the show ever, that will very likely feature prominently when the new 23rd season starts in January in America.

Colton Underwood told America's Good Morning America on which the announcement was made that he's looking for love and marriage: "That’s what I’m looking for … being engaged and then getting married shortly after that. I’m very excited. Third time’s the charm, that’s what they say, right? That’s what I’m hoping for!"

The Bachelor is shown in South Africa and Africa on M-Net's 1Magic (DStv 103) with M-Net that is also working on the first local South African version, The Bachelor South Africa for a debut in 2019 that is currently casting women for an as-yet-unannounced man.