10 / FEATURE
www.thecallsheet.co.za
High Rollers (SABC)
Ofentse Tlou, a YOTV presenter since June 2016.
Uzalo (SABC 1)
SHAPING SA’S TV
CONTENT LANDSCAPE Much has taken place in South Africa’s television industry over the last twelve months. Kim Crowie explores the local sector to find out where opportunities lie and what hurdles still need to be overcome.
I
n a landmark decision that saw a varied response across the board, the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) CEO Hlaudi Motsoeneng committed the company to implementing an 80% local TV content quota from July 2016. Almost a year later, things have still not normalised, and it will likely take a while to see the successful implementation of such a drastic change in
television programming – if the SABC decides to stick to its plan despite reporting a debilitating loss of R411-million for the 2015/16 financial year, and after losing 18 million viewers during AFCON 2017 in January. As a result of this change, however, the country has seen an enormous need for quality television content creation, with a number of production houses taking on the
mantle of bringing fresh, local shows to viewers nationwide.
THE YEAR THAT WAS
When talking broadcasters, it’s important to remember that although the SABC’s local content strategy might not be working properly yet, it’s not the only company in hot water. The industry was rattled in 2016 by the number of shocking staff and executive
lay-offs and retrenchments at SABC, eTV and ANN7. That said, 2016 was a good year for OpenViewHD, according to The Media Online. Set top box sales pushing through the 500k mark, and are set to potentially reach 750 000 in 2017 – the level where Nielsen begins to rate channels’ viewership and advertising finally gets ratings information. Video on Demand (VOD) has