Universal TV Vs. BBC Brit: The Home Of Premium Entertainment

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Universal and BBC Brit are international general entertainment channel respectively owned by US based company NBCUniversal and UK based company BBC Studios. These happen to be one of the few premium entertainment channels left globally as streaming has taken a toll with how content is viewed.

Universal is an action, adventure and crime based channel which is home to cop dramas such as Chicago PD and NCIS: Los Angeles, medical shows like Transplant and Chicago Med and finally mystery and supernatural dramas like Departure and Fantasy Island.

BBC Brit adapts to a similar form as Universal as they too offer dramas such as EastEnders and William Shakespeare. But the channel doesn't consider itself Universal exclusive as there's other content like The Graham Norton Show, Total Wipeout and Top Gear.

One of the things I think most people won't like about Universal is the amount of rehashed content that various local providers air first-hand. I mean I don't mind a little nostalgia every now and then I mean they got Bones and Rizzoli And Isles but these rebroadcasts get a bit annoying.

When it comes to BBC Brit, I'd say a lot of channels need to be done. I mean it's more like Universal on the repetitive side but imagine watching the same season of Top Gear repeatedly on top of that having 3 shows take up most of the schedule.

Not long ago, BBC First was shelved with BBC Brit having to pull the muscle I mean come on 2 hours of primetime with 2 hours of repeats during the day but Top Gear gets more than that on a daily basis.

If you're looking for top notch entertainment head on down to Universal sure you won't get Graham Norton or Planet Earth but you sure won't have a lineup that is as repetitive as a certain kids brand I prefer leaving unnamed.

BBC Brit is a waste but the channel has its own perks that some have to grasp for the time being I mean there's BritBox or BBC iPlayer but to those without these services have to view the bulk of content on this channel which appears as an absolute disaster.

Its eMovies And eMovies Extra Vs. TNT And CineMagic: Another Openview Vs. DStv Saga

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Openview has been dominating the South African market for several years giving companies like MultiChoice a run for their money particularly for those residing on lower bouquets such as DStv Easyview as the once underachieving platform is about to go through some changes.

MultiChoice will be adding two new entertainment channels to the bouquet in the month of November, Magic Showcase and CineMagic which just helps build onto the number of alternatives in South Africa.

Openview offers less channels but they have managed to win a lot of audiences with the selection of sports, local dramas, international series, kids shows and movies. Now it appears as if MultiChoice has begun catching up to the free-to-view platform.

DStv Easyview only offered 1 movie channel TNT which has been having a bit of its ups and downs with the likes of Blade, I Know What You Did Last Summer, Final Destination, Anaconda and so forth. If it was for TNT Original Movies and All Elite Wrestling I don't how far the channel could have gotten.

Point is, TNT was at a disadvantage as Openview provided two movie channels eMovies and eMovies Extra which were able to juggle around a mix of emotions. eMovies had Pokémon, Mama Jack and Oh Schuks while eMovies Extra had Fast And Furious, Transporter and Rush Hour.

With the inclusion of CineMagic, I'm not expecting them to read each other's mind or become the sibling duo as these two fall under different grounds so the only thing that anyone should be excited about is the number of options available.

CineMagic is set to feature a mix of local and international films 18 hours a day leaving TNT to the remaining 6 hours. Although, a schedule hasn't been provided my guess would be the content is based from M-Net Movies and Mzansi Bioskop.

Over to the winners which there's none, you got to look at the benefits to the above brands to reach your conclusion. eMovies is very selective I guess that's what made them favourable on DStv, TNT has got All Elite Wrestling and CineMagic by my hunch has the local productions.

Magic Showcase Vs. Novela Magic: List Of Content You'll Probably Miss Out On? + Potential Content Suggestions

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MultiChoice and M-Net decided to the halt the distribution of Novela Magic to consumers in South Africa with the channel expected to go off air from 27 November as it will be supplemented by two other channels ahead of time, Magic Showcase and CineMagic.

Novela Magic offered a lot of content from Mzansi Magic which is enough justification to have it removed but the brand existed for multiple brands as well including Africa Magic, Maisha Magic, Zambezi Magic, Pearl Magic and Maningue Magic.

While as Mzansi Magic and kykNET can make up for the chunk of SA content alongside kykNET & Kie, kykNET Lekker and Mzansi Magic. Viewers will basically lose access to content from the above-mentioned brands with Access receiving the most blows.

Africa Magic hosts a ray of linear channels none of which can be viewed on the Access package so it's bye bye to The Johnsons, Zuba and Battleground unless you plan to upgrade to the Family package in order to continue watching these shows or Easyview better yet.

Magic Showcase is a general entertainment channel which will be sourcing out content from Mzansi Magic such as Being Bonang and The Imposter while as supplying content outside of that namely Zuba, Arendsvlei and Legacy.

All this kind of gave me an idea for another channel which is hovered with rebroadcasts and basically a waste to Compact bouquets, Mzansi Wethu.

As much as MultiChoice refuses to acknowledge the fact Mzansi Wethu is basically how Magic Showcase could have been had they made it accessible to more consumers. I know I say this channel sucks a lot but maybe there is a way to keep it onboard.

In July, kykNET introduced their Turkish offering on kykNET & Kie which kind of helped give the channel its own identity as opposed to being viewed as kykNET+. Mzansi Wethu could do something similar but instead of sourcing Turkish they go for African.

Africa Magic Family already supplies Isibaya to their audiences so what's the harm in getting Battleground and Zuba onto Mzansi Wethu as it can help reduce that repeat tier tendancy for those using the Compact bouquet.

MTV Hits Vs. Qwest TV: MultiChoice's Transition From Pop To Jazz

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During the week, it was reported that MTV Hits will be the next channel to exit the DStv platform this comes after the close demise of Da Vinci Kids. On top of that, another channel Qwest TV is set to take its place within the following month.

MTV Hits was an international music brand operated by Paramount Global which also supplies channels like BET, MTV, Comedy Central and Nickelodeon. Qwest TV another foreigner was founded by American producer, musician and multi Grammy Award winner Quincy Jones.

MTV Hits dwells in the world of pop featuring hits from the likes of Taylor Swift, Ariana Grande and Drake. Qwest TV very much like the defunct Soul Music channel on the Openview platform is a jazz infused channel home to the likes of Herbie Hancock, Andersen Paak and Aretha Franklin.

MTV Hits seperated themselves from the rest of the pack's overrepetitive lifestyle but it too came with a lot of repetition. Just like it's predecessor, MTV Music24 all its content played in a particular order and would often restart within the day.

Basically, the channel was less productive which could have been the result to its demise.

Qwest TV seeks to undo the wrong which was set by MTV Hits as the brand on top of being a multimedia platform offers concerts, live performances, countdowns and documentaries. The only setback comes from it being a jazz channel.

MTV Hits was more of a youth based brand as the offering resonates with audiences between the ages of 13-18 or 18-34 years while Qwest TV is for a whole new audience or in this case 25-49+ years. The only thing these two have very much in common at this point is their focus on international shores.

Most people between the age range for MTV Hits are using Spotify or iTunes to stream their favourite tunes but to those who are unable to afford such luxury will now have to direct themselves to the audio section of DStv for a similar offering.

Qwest TV is gearing up for a November debut as MTV Hits gets wiped off the airwaves. MultiChoice hasn't launched Moonbug Kids as promised on the 13th of October.

BBC Brit Vs. BBC UKTV: Recommendations And Major Improvements

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Last month, BBC Studios and eMedia Investments unveiled a new free-to-air channel BBC UKTV which comes out of an existing brand which was later adapted to South Africa in order for more consumers to have access to the bouquet of content currently seen on DStv.

BBC UKTV is set to be a mashup of most other channels carried exclusively on DStv as it features reality shows like Top Gear and The Great British Cook Off, drama series like Doctor and Casualty and even a dedicated kids block so what's not to love about the channel.

While others may view it's seperate counterparts as repetitive but this one on the other hand comes with limitations as it means viewers would have to wait a while longer to view certain content. Of course, if there's one thing I guarantee makes it a winner is the quantity on the channel.

BBC UKTV had me thinking about the current linear offering on the DStv platform. As it is BBC Lifestyle, BBC Earth, CBeebies and BBC World News have been met with a lot of praise from families and kids alike but if there's one thing a lot of consumers would have mixed feelings for its BBC Brit.

BBC Brit has been active since 2015 following the termination of BBC Entertainment and offered several shows like The Graham Norton Show, Who Wants To Be A Millionaire, Wipeout and Top Gear. Following the termination of BBC First, it's the exclusive home to dramas such as EastEnders and Downtown Abbey.

Point being made, BBC Brit was viewed more as a waste to DStv customers before inheriting the BBC First offering and even after welcoming that content viewer's interpretation of the channel hasn't seen much improvement and I mean the reasons are very much justified.

We all know certain channels have that mascot that takes most of the spotlight with BBC Brit it has to be Wipeout and Top Gear and I know these are popular franchises but is it really the version that got anyone excited.

And on to the drama slate, BBC First was able to offer at least 6 hours of entertainment with BBC Brit it's a mere two hours with 1 show getting more of the attention but anyone whose viewing the channel isn't a fan on how the channel chooses to rollout most of their content which is where I'm involving BBC UKTV.

Honestly, I feel it's high time that BBC Studios looks into perhaps merging or making BBC Brit adapt a similar form as it is not a lot of BBC Lifestyle and Earth is available on the channel just selected content unlike the one viewers will be getting from BBC UKTV.

[Missed Opportunity]: Expanding The Reach Of Novela Magic Or Telemundo To DStv Easyview

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eExtra was ripped off from the DStv platform for at least a month and was reinstated shortly after alongside eToonz, eMovies and eMovies Extra on the DStv platform following pending investigation by the Competition Tribunal which will take at least 6 months to resolve.

MultiChoice appears to have moved on although they don't put it in writing recent additions like DreamWorks and Movie Room has led me to believe that the pay-tv company has no plans to keep these channels past 6 months or at least a portion of channels.

As outlined by MultiChoice, eMedia Investments bulk of content doesn't fit into their 5 year content strategy for which the brand had stated consumers are viewing more DStv content than actual original programs although 2 appear to fit that description.

On top of that, they had mentioned that they won't be able to launch as much channels as they used to in the past year due to transponder constraints so whenever a new channel comes it usually has to occupy the space taken away from another channel.

In court, MultiChoice stated 3 SABC channels would accommodate for the 4 e.tv channels in the coming future but that's the thing. If anyone is similar with the SABC then you can already imagine how the content would differ.

Instead of Postman Pat you get Words And Numbers and Die Put is supplemented by past episodes of 90 Plein Street and although some of this content can benefit some audiences it's completely different.

The package I'm targeting for this article had to be Easyview cause as seen by several consumers it's one of the least valuable packages in the market with few exceptions being wrestling on TNT alongside the lifestyle and factual entertainment viewed on Real Time.

On top of that, the package isn't fortunate with additions and at times replacements for whenever a channel is removed from the DStv platform which was the case with eMedia's 4 channels of which the package inherited just 2 channels.

When they were unexpectedly scrapped from the DStv platform. Multichoice rather just add 1 channel to supplement for 2 worse is when the channel doesn't cater to a lot of viewers, PBS Kids.

MultiChoice could have done a lot for the package especially since they lost another notable brand in 2020, SABC Encore which was one of the few watchable channels on the platform and although there's plenty of channels for adults than kids as outlined only a few are worth the value.

Novela Magic or Telemundo would have done better to fill the void MultiChoice left for fans of Kuiertyd. Although, they wouldn't be better Elif, Doodsondes or Stiletto Vendetta these channels have something in common character driven content.

Aside from the content, these channels have a high level of repeats although NBCUniversal doesn't see it the channel has fallen in terms of quantity while as Novela Magic repeats from other M-Net local channels would have given them some outlet to view the bulk of local content.