MultiChoice sorry for R19.95 Rugby World Cup DStv billing mistake.

by Thinus Ferreira

MultiChoice is apologising for billing chaos around its R19.95 access offer to watch the 2023 Rugby World Cup final that angered DStv subscribers, with the pay-TV operator saying customers who suddenly got saddled with big bills won't be expected to pay more.

Last week Friday MultiChoice suddenly started to advertise a R19.95 once-off offer for customers to watch Saturday's final between the Springboks and New Zealand on DStv on the DStv Access streaming package.

The R19.95 price point was a play on the year 1995 when South Africa first won the Rugby World Cup.

From a marketing perspective MultiChoice leveraged the high interest in Saturday night's sports content from SuperSport as a DStv driver for sampling, event TV ratings, customer retention and possible new subscription adds.

A problem arose shortly after Saturday night at midnight - with the Rugby World Cup final match which ended just before midnight - when DStv Access sampler sign-ups who made use of the R19.95 to watch the game, cancelled or tried to cancel their one-day sign-up again.

They suddenly discovered they now owed and had an outstanding balance of -R175 instead of owing nothing. It's unclear where the R175 billing came from since DStv Access costs R99 per month.

Multiple complaints started on social media like X, formerly branded as Twitter, with people upset with DStv, and nothing that they're suddenly required to cancel with 30-days notice to MultiChoice and are saddled with negative balances.

People like Kayla shared screenshots of their DStv accounts, saying "I was celebrating now I'm crying. I signed up for R19.95 and now you want me to pay R175.50." People also said that DStv's customer support channels and call centre operators were unhelpful to resolve the billing mistake.

On Monday night MultiChoice told TVwithThinus the Randburg-based pay-TV operator apologises for the billing mistake, that it will be corrected soon and that nobody who made use of the R19.95 will be expected to pay more.

"MultiChoice would like to assure customers who signed up for the R19.95 Rugby World Cup deal that they will continue to enjoy their subscription to DStv Access (including an additional mobile Extra Stream) for a full month from their date of subscription for R19.95."

"Should customers choose to extend their subscription, they will be billed at R99 per month from the second month onwards."

"MultiChoice acknowledges and apologises for an error in customers' calculated amount on their statements. This will be corrected shortly. MultiChoice remains committed to bringing our customers the very best in sports and entertainment."

MultiChoice said that people who are having problems with the R19.95 offer can use the email address of RWC_Queries@DStv.com for help.

Morgan Freeman on Netflix's Life on Our Planet: 'It's Earth's milestones in the history of life'.

by Thinus Ferreira

Netflix has released the Steven Spielberg-produced Life on Our Planet with Morgan Freeman as narrator as a new 8-episode series - tracking the rise and fall of life in its myriad of forms on Earth across 4 billion years.

Life on Our Planet is filled with life-like special effects, recreating creatures from millions of years ago as it tracks the story of life through Earth's previous mass extinction events.

Made over nearly five years, Life on Our Planet blends groundbreaking visual effects with state-of-the-art nature photography to show the story of what happened to some photorealistic animals that once roamed this planet.

Executive produced by Steven Spielberg, Alastair Fothergill, Keith Scholey, Darryl Frank and Justin Falvey, of Amblin TV and Silverback Films, Life on Our Planet uses the latest technology and science to bring long-extinct creatures back to life as it tracks the incredible story of life on Earth that today is home to 20 million species.

According to the producers, Life on Our Planet shows viewers "the story of life unfolding through its most pivotal moments: from the first single-celled life form, to the first animals to move out from the

sea and onto land, to the first creatures to take flight".

"Revisiting one of Earth's longest-lived dynasties, the dinosaurs, viewers bear witness to the cataclysmic downfall that led to the age of the mammals and the rise of the most dangerous animal the earth has ever seen: us."

With special effects done by Industrial Light and Magic, Life on Our Planet is similar to Prehistoric Planet on Apple TV+ - but not just showing extinct species, but also those who managed to adapt and the evolutionary adaptations they employed to survive over millions of years.

Life on Our Planet tracks the five mass extinctions that have happened over the span of Earth's history and how close the planet is to its sixth mass extinction event.

"Every single living thing alive today can trace its heritage back four billion years," says Morgan Freeman.

"Life on Our Planet explores the most important milestones in the history of life. This is the story of the great battles for survival and the dynasties that would take over the world. This is the story of life."

"We are the first species in the four billion-year story of life to understand what is happening to our

world. We are also the first species to understand what is needed to put it right."

"Our intelligence got us this far and it's the only thing that can save us. Our future and that of the planet is yet to be written. How we act now will determine the next chapter in the story of life."

M-Net’s Recipes for Love and Murder renewed for second season.

by Thinus Ferreira

The murder mystery series Recipes for Love and Murder on M-Net (DStv 101) has been renewed for a second season which will start filming in April 2024.

Recipes for Love and Murder - a co-production between M-Net, Acorn TV and production company Both Worlds Pictures - will have a second season of eight episodes, bringing the total number of the series to 18 episodes. 

The first season with director Christiaan Olwagen was broadcast on M-Net in March 2022.

Recipes for Love and Murder is based on the novel Recipes for Love and Murder: A Tannie Maria Mystery of the South African author Sally Andrew with the culinary murder mystery that revolves around Maria Purvis (Doyle Kennedy) who is a recipe advice columnist for a small town newspaper.

"Recipes for Love and Murder has since its global distribution once again proven the appetite for our stories told through authenticity by Africa’s most-loved storytellers," says Nomsa Philiso, general entertainment CEO at the MultiChoice Group in a press release that was issued globally but not to South African media.

"We look forward to building on the success of this title through our international partnerships."

Catherine Mackin, managing director of Acorn Media Enterprises on behalf of Acorn TV, says "We are delighted to welcome our audiences back to the beautiful region of the Karoo in South Africa and the exciting but often dangerous world of Tannie Maria, led by the incomparable Maria Doyle Kennedy".

"There are still many investigations with shocking twists and turns to uncover, and with Tannie Maria leading the charge, justice is surely a small discovery of detail away."

Thierry Cassuto, Both Worlds Pictures managing director, says "We're overjoyed to announce the renewal of our beloved Recipes for Love and Murder for another season".

"This achievement is a testament to the dedication and talent of our creative team. To our partners, your support has been invaluable. To our fans, your love for the show has been the ultimate reward. And to Maria, we can't wait to have you back in South Africa and to cook up more magic together."

Mission: Impossible 8 with new name pushed to autumn 2025.

by Thinus Ferreira

Because of the Hollywood strike Paramount Pictures has now pushed out the premiere of Tom Cruise's Mission: Impossible 8 by a year from 2024 to autumn 2025 with the film which will also get a new name.

Instead of June 2024, cinemagoers will have to wait a year longer for Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part 2, which will also undergo a name change. 

Paramount announced the Mission: Impossible 8 date shift as part of a raft of cinema release date changes in its latest release schedule update to the industry.

Paramount Pictures and Skydance blame the ongoing and protracted SAG-AFTRA strike by Hollywood actors demanding a better ideal from the various Hollywood studios including Netflix, with Million: Impossible which had to shut down production similar to many other films and TV series.

Filming for the second part of Dead Reckoning took place worldwide in places like Norway and the United Kingdom and including South Africa, with Tom Cruise who jumped out of an aircraft in the South African skies.

Cast of M-Net's Summertide sea-setshow filled with soap alums and CGI penguins.

by Thinus Ferreira

M-Net (DStv 101) has announced the cast of its upcoming generations-spanning drama series Summertide with Frank Rautenbach, Monique Rockman, Tyrone Keogh (right), Andre Jacobs and Terry Norton headlining the Cape South Peninsula sea-set show.

Summertide - an ambitious 52-episode drama which will unspool from late January 2024 on M-Net on Sunday evenings at 18:00 as the Carte Blanche lead-in - is produced by Red Letter Day Pictures and is currently filming in and around Cape Town's South Peninsula, including Simon's Town, Kommetjie and Kalk Bay. 

Written and lensed by the married production duo Corné and René van Rooyen, Summertide is described as a multi-generational drama series exploring "the profound depths of grief and the transformative power of love".

Summertide tells the story of marine biologist and father of two children, Martin Field Frank Rautenbach, left), who moves to the False Bay area to get away from a big secret – the death of his wife. There he starts a marine conservation trust for False Bay but life isn't as simple as it seems.

The series explores the lives of the Field family and the interesting characters who cross their paths, each one with their own secrets and desires. 

Headlining Summertide is Frank Rautenbach as charismatic marine biologist Martin, with Monique Rockman portraying a Michelin-star chef and Martin's former lover, Rebecca. She is currently in a relationship with his brother.

Also on the call sheet are veteran stage and screen actors Andre Jacobs and Terry Norton as Martin's parents Jack and Wilma Field.

Starring as Martin's children, the 16-year-old Tristan and 10-year-old Lucy are Jan Combrink and Evangelina Hallock.

Tyrone Keogh who was seen in M-Net's soap opera The Wild will be seen in the role of Martin's brother, Gavin a hedonistic retired professional surfer. 

Other talented additions include Ntombi Makhutshi who will also appear in M-Net's upcoming crime thriller drama series Devil’s Peak, Cassiel Eatock-Winnik, Euodia Samson, Maurice Carpede and Morné Visser. Amalia Uys is Martin's deceased wife Julia.

Interestingly Summertide will also feature two penguins brought to screen with the help of CGI special effects.

ALSO READ: M-Net names its year-at-the-seaside new drama series set in Simon's Town as Summertide.

Another massive price hike for Apple TV+.

by Thinus Ferreira

Apple TV+ is once again doing a massive price hike of 43% with the monthly subscription fee of R125 set to increase to R192 per month.

It's another massive price hike after Apple increased the Apple TV+ subscription fee by 47% a year ago when it increased the price from R85 per month to R125 per month in its first-ever increase in October 2022.

Apple TV+ subscribers will now be paying R67 more per month with the subscription fee in dollar terms raised from $6.99 to $9.99, which means that Apple TV+ subscribers will be paying double what the video streaming service cost just a year ago.

"We are focused on delivering the best experiences possible for our customers by consistently adding high-quality entertainment, content, and innovative features to our services," Apple said in a statement about the latest Apple TV+ price hike.

"Since launching four years ago, Apple TV+ has made history for streaming services by crossing major milestones in a short span of time, thanks to its extensive selection of award-winning and broadly acclaimed series, feature films, documentaries, and kids and family entertainment."

According to Apple "existing subscribers will see these price increases 30 days later, on their next renewal date. We are focused on delivering the best experiences possible for our customers by consistently adding high-quality entertainment, content, and innovative features to our services."

Apple TV+ has steadily grown its collection of AppleTV+ original titles which includes shows like Foundation, The Morning Show and Ted Lasso, as well as Lessons in Chemistry, For All Mankind and Silo.

Apple which is yet to disclose how many subscribers it has for Apple TV+ and is set to report its fourth-quarter earnings next Thursday, isn't alone in hiking prices for its video streaming service, with Netflix and Disney+ that have increased prices this year and Amazon Prime Video and Netflix planning further price hikes in 2024.

MultiChoice's Showmax will announce a new price plan restructure when it relaunches a retooled Showmax within months in partnership with Comcast's NBCUniversal and Britain's Sky with the redone Showmax which will now carry sports content folded in like the English Premier League (EPL).

MultiChoice axes the Da Vinci kids channel from DStv.

by Thinus Ferreira

MultiChoice is ending and removing the global Da Vinci kids channel from DStv.

Da Vinci (DStv 318), owned and run by Macademia, is removed three years and nine months after it was added in March 2020 with the channel that will go dark for pay-TV subscribers on 14 November.

When MultiChoice added Da Vinci almost four years ago, it said that it was doing so since Da Vinci provided a "a safe space for children and parents to choose from a range of age-appropriate content that is entertaining and educational for both" and that the addition of the channel was "in line with our commitment to delivering content that caters and resonates with the whole family".

In response to a media query, MultiChoice confirmed it's removing Da Vinci.

The Randburg-based pay-TV operator says that it "regularly reviews its channel line-up to ensure we offer customers the best in local and international content" and that "as part of this ongoing process, Da Vinci will no longer be available on DStv from 14 November 2023".

SABC adds little-publicised entertainment magazine show The Sauce to SABC1.

by Thinus Ferreira

The SABC has added another entertainment magazine show, The Sauce to the SABC1 schedule, barely promoting it and with little publicity effort.

The SABC didn't bother to share or send out even a basic press release for The Sauce produced by Bonngoe Productions, and there were no roundtable interviews or any publicity push for the show. 

Ironically and sadly - but unexpected for the SABC - the show is about the local entertainment industry, but the SABC wasn't able to actually engage with the local entertainment industry properly about it.

Last week, two days before the broadcast of its first episode on TV the SABC suddenly had a lunch event for The Sauce in Johannesburg for some Johannesburg media only (who likewise did little to absolutely no reporting about it but will probably be invited again), although SABC1 is a nationally-seen channel. 

Nomalanga Shozi is the presenter of The Sauce. On Wikipedia it says she was in Rhythm City, the now-cancelled soap on e.tv, and is a TV and radio presenter and an actress. In 2018 Nomalanga Shozi went to Las Vegas to cover the backstage area and red carpet of the 2018 BET Soul Train Awards and hosted BET Breaks.

The SABC complained in parliament earlier this month that the money it has spent from its last government bailout failed to lift ratings for any of the new shows produced by that money.

The Sauce is another great example of that where the SABC makes content and doesn't bother to properly publicise or promote it with the media through anything remotely resembling proper PR. It's as if it doesn't exist although it costs a lot of money to make it.

The Sauce is apparently an entertainment show, like E! News, doing "takedowns of everything celebrity, entertainment news, influence and lifestyle" with a "tongue-in-cheek comedic approach". 

It sound and looks stale and dated and completely from a bygone 2000s era like trying to redo Nicky Greenwall's The Showbiz Report that was on e.tv. Another here-today-gone-tomorrow show or will The Sauce survive for longer than a season?

The Morning After with a British singer washing up on a Cape Town beach is Amazon Prime Video's first South African drama series.

by Thinus Ferreira

Filming has started on Amazon Studios' first South African drama series, The Morning After, in which a British singer and party girl wakes up naked on a Cape Town beach after she broke out and escaped rehab and is then taken in by a group of young people.

The Morning After as the first original South African drama series for Amazon Prime Video comes after the disappointing and little-publicised Gangs of Lagos which finally made its debut earlier this year with very little fanfare or media traction as the first Amazon Original film from Africa.

Amazon Studios also announced that it is doing a format version of LOL: Last One Laughing South Africa with Trevor Noah as host, as well as a Nigerian version, LOL: Last One Laughing Naija.

Then the streamer also commissioned a new Nigerian travelogue reality show Ebuka Turns Up Africa, with all of these shows which will make their debut in 2024 when Amazon's localised retail presence and portal also launches in South Africa.

The Morning After with eight episodes is produced by Both Worlds Pictures and Paradoxal for Amazon Prime Video, with British actress Amara Okereke in the main role as Nina who makes friends with a group of twentysomething beach cottage mates Michaela, Mandisa, Cleo and Justin after she bails on the upmarket rehab centre New Life in Cape Town.

The Morning After, created by Thierry Cassuto and Karen Jeynes also responsible for M-Net's Recipes for Love and Murder, also stars Carmen Pretorius as rich kid turned artist Michaela, Danica Jones as camerawoman Pauline, Richard Gau as aspiring techbro Justin and Khaya Dladla as nightclub impresario Tarquin. 

Tarryn Wyngaard plays lawyer Cleo and Gaosi Raditholo is model Mandisa.

The drama series is directed by Cindy Lee and Karen Jeynes with Rémy Jacquelin at Paradoxal and Thierry Cassuto, Karen Jeynes and Thato Cassuto at Both Worlds Pictures as co-executive producers.

Nina is "determined not to give her stepfather the satisfaction of seeing her fail and takes on a series of hustles to earn enough for rent, food and weed, putting her singing talents to good use, and relishing the world-renowned carefree sunkissed Cape Town lifestyle".

Rémy Jacquelin says The Morning After "is a very special project whose time has finally come for Paradoxal and Both Worlds, the second in our slate which got disrupted by Covid. It's a fun, sexy and bingeworthy comedy-drama set, with an amazing young cast, in stunningly beautiful Cape Town and we can't wait to share it with viewers from all around the world".