The Box: Gideon Khobane joins as Director for Prime Video Africa

Africa: MultiChoice Zambia announced a DStv price hike from August 2023, following DStv and GOtv price increases since March this year in the countries of South Africa to Ghana, Nigeria, and Uganda, from July in Tanzania. Even a second price hike within months in Kenya. MultiChoice Zambia claims the economic climate is to blame for increasing prices.

Gideon Khobane has joined Amazon as the director for Prime Video Africa. Khobane joins with a remit to support the growth of the Prime Video service across sub-Saharan Africa, South Africa, and Nigeria. He will work closely with the Africa Originals team, headed up by Ned Mitchell, the content acquisitions team, led by Ayanna Lonian, and the product teams responsible for launching customer features. Khobane is tasked with helping to provide a mix of original and exclusive TV series and movies for existing Prime Video members and to attract new customers in sub-Saharan Africa.

9.2 million South Africans owe an astounding R44.2 billion ($2.4 billion) in SABC TV Licence fees, according to Mondli Gungubele, South Africa's minister. The R44.2 billion comprised unpaid invoices and penalties for non-payment over several years, with at least 5.6 million accounts seized for external debt collection. SABC's TV Licence system and compliance are looking for new ways to levy the money as their current system has been compromised.

MultiChoice has decided to cancel an R1.56 million consultancy contract with Kgomotso Moroka, one of the longest-serving board members of MultiChoice. This comes as complaints from investors that question her contract as it places her role as an independent MultiChoice director in question.

MultiChoice shares fell 12% on Tuesday over investors' growing fears over intent to pour into its video streaming service Showmax under a new joint venture with NBCUniversal and Comcast. MultiChoice intends to overhaul Showmax entirely but at the cost of billions to compete against global streaming giants like Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Disney+, and Apple TV+.

MultiChoice plans to launch Showmax 2.0 the new version of its video streaming service. The service says the Comcast NBCUniversal Peacock partnership will increase Showmax's international content offering and boost its subscriber numbers. MultiChoice and Comcast plan to battle Netflix as the leading streaming service in South Africa and across the African continent. Comcast intends to use thousands of engineers working to improve the capabilities and user experience of the video streaming service.

The acclaimed writer, producer, and director Teboho Mahlatsi, co-creator of the SABC series Yizo Yizo and company director at Bomb Productions, has died at 49. The Mahlatsi family said, "It is with saddest regret that we announce the untimely passing of filmmaker and producer Teboho Moseling Mahlatsi on 3 July 2023".

The first trailer for Supa Team 4, Netflix’s first African animation series launches next month on July 20. The eight-part series comes from writer Malenga Mulendema, South African toon studio Triggerfish, and London-based kids specialist Cake, with animation from France’s Superprod. The African talent includes John Kani, Pamela Nomvete, Zowa Ngwira, Namisa Mdlalose, Nancy Sekhokoane, and Sparky Xulu are joined by international actors John McMillan and Kimani Arthur. The series revolves around four school-age teenagers living in the Neo-futuristic city of Lusaka who are recruited to become superheroes by a retired secret agent.

DStv subscribers’ complaint about nudity and bare-breasted women depicted in Mzansi Magic's new Sunday night drama series Shaka iLembe has been dismissed by the Broadcasting Complains Commission of South Africa (BCCSA). At the same time, MultiChoice's M-Net channels like M-Net (DStv 101) and its streamer Showmax have shown similar nudity before and also male nudity over the past few years. The complaints arrived when a woman with bare breasts appeared in a locally-produced series.

eMedia's eVOD video streaming service has reached 800,000 subscribers, fueling South African viewers' transition from linear television to streaming content online. Although eMedia has not officially stated its active members, they are open to the industry about its South African streamer growth than rivals like MultiChoice's Showmax, The Walt Disney Company Africa's Disney+, Amazon Prime Video, and Apple TV+.

Tanzania gets a DStv price hike, with MultiChoice Tanzania hiking DStv subscription fees from 1 July 2023. MultiChoice Africa also hiked prices in several African countries during the first half of 2023, including Ghana, Nigeria, Kenya, and Uganda.

Disney has announced a price hike of 16.8% for its Disney+ video streaming service in South Africa increasing monthly subscription fees from R119 to R139 on 19 July 2023. The increase for a monthly Disney+ subscription in South Africa is far above South Africa's inflation rate. While Walt Disney Africa didn't issue a statement or public announcement, all existing annual Disney+ customers in South Africa who subscribe directly from Disney+ will receive a notice.

Veteran actor Patrick Ndlovu, known for his roles in Yizo Yizo and Zone 14, died at age 84. His management agency, Moonyeenn Lee Associates (MLA) offers its deepest condolences to Ndlovu’s family and friends along with SABC remembering his legacy and commitment to his craft.

The South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) Board appoints Nada Wotshela as acting group chief executive officer while recruiting a new GCEO. At the same time, SABC says goodbye to its current CEO, Madoda Mxakwe, whose five-year tenure ends, the first SABC Group Chief Executive Officer to complete his contract in over 15 years.

Asia: D.P. creator Kim Bo-tong has signed with CAA for representation. The series follows a team of Korean military police tasked with catching deserters. The series shows the complexities of the Korean military and deeply rooted hazing rituals.

Ektaa R Kapoor’s Balaji Telefilms has revealed an upcoming slate for television and streaming services including an untitled historical for a leading broadcast channel, a pre-medieval era show for a global streamer, a show based on a true murder in the TV industry for a leading streamer, and a love story for Sony.

CJ ENM has appointed Choi Ju-hui as CEO of the TVing streaming service following the recent resignation of CEO Jay Yang. Choi becomes the first female CEO in the Korean OTT platform business. Choi’s appointment also follows the completion of the merger between TVing and Seezn, a smaller streamer previously owned by KT Corp.

Phoenix Waters Productions has released the first trailer for their 12-episode Hong Kong crime drama created by Bizhan Tong, Forensic Psychologist, starring Jeannie Chan. Chan stars as a psychologist who investigates suspects to determine whether they are mentally fit for trial. The series cast includes Justin Cheung (Breakout Brothers), Crisel Consunji (Still Human), Bryant Mak Chi-lok (Go With The Glow Era), Joey Wong (Your Highness), Locker Lam (Chilli Laugh Story), Sabrina Cheung (Big Brother), Ng Wing Sze (Mad Fate) and Eric Tsui (Septet: The Story Of Hong Kong).

Production is underway on a second season of the lesbian drama Fragrance of the First Flower from Taiwan’s GagaOOLala. The series follows the life of Yi-Ming (portrayed by Lin ZaiZai), who finds herself reunited with Ting-Ting (played by Cheng Lyan), a girl from her past. Their encounter sparks a connection that opens the door to the possibility of escaping Yi-Ming’s monotonous married life.

Zhang Yimou joins the worldwide shift by feature film directors into streaming. Zhang will be an executive producer and involved with his first TV series The First Shot. The show will be directed by Xing Lu and backed by Tencent Video. It is currently in development, with a release date in 2025.

Squid Game Season 2 on Netflix is rounding out its cast with Park Gyu-young (Sweet Home), Jo Yu-ri, Kang Ae-sim (Be Melodramatic), Lee David (The Fortress), Lee Jin-uk (Sweet Home), Choi Seung-Hyun (Tazza: The Hidden Card), Roh Jae-won (Missing Yoon), and Won Ji-an (D.P.). Netflix previously announced that Yim Si-Wan, Kang Ha-Neul, Park Sung-Hoon, and Yang Dong-Geun would also be joining the new season alongside returning cast members Lee Jung-Jae, Lee Byung-hun, Gong Yoo, and Wi Ha-jun. Hwang Dong-hyuk will return as writer, director, and executive producer with Kim Ji-yeon for the new season.

Prime Video India has announced upcoming releases for its service including the horror series Adhura and a Telugu adaptation of YA drama Hostel Days. Rasika Dugalis heading the cast of Adhura, along with Ishwak Singh, Shrenik Arora, and Poojan Chhabra. The seven-episode series is produced by Emmay Entertainment (Mumbai Diaries, Rocket Boys) and co-directed by Ananya Banerjee and Gauravv K Chawla. The story follows two timelines, in 2022 and 2007, as a series of supernatural events plague the students and staff of a prestigious boarding school. The series will be released on July 7. Hostel Days, which launches July 13, is a Telugu version of the Hindi-language YA drama about a group of students boarding together at an engineering college. Prime Video India announces two Tamil-language productions superhero film Veeran which will release on June 30 and the series Sweet Kaaram Coffee on July 6, following three women from different generations rekindling their love for life. Recent Prime Video India launches include the Hindi romantic series Jee Karda, starring Tamannaah Bhatia, the Telugu movie Anni Manchi Sakunamule, Prime Video original Hindi movie Tiku Weds Sheru, produced by Kangana Ranaut, and the Hindi version of Mani Ratnam’s Tamil historical action movie Ponniyin Selvan: II.

In 2022, 32 U.S. titles ranked in the top 100 of the most globally popular new scripted TV shows released in 2022. According to Ampere Analysis, 30 South Korean series made the same Top 100, and 9 of the top 100 titles were Japanese. The fandom base of Korean series and Japanese anime is concentrated in teen and YA demographics, who are also most avid Internet users. The shift in focus to still-growing markets will only accelerate the globalization of popular scripted TV.

South Korea’s KBS is under threat due to government plans to alter its funding mechanism. The Global Task Force for Public Media which includes KBS, the BBC, and CBC has issued a statement warning plans to change legislation would lead to an uncertain future. Korea’s government wants to separate the collection of KBS’s license fee from electricity bills. KBS argues that their revenue would take an enormous hit and prevent them from serving the public.

On Monday, Warner Bros. Discovery Thailand unveiled three new Thai HBO Asia Originals, boosting its content slate. The lineup includes the action-fantasy feature Khun Pan 3, the fun-filled cooking series MarkKim + Chef, and the high-society reality series Deane’s Dynasty. All three titles will be released exclusively on HBO and WBD’s regional streaming service HBO Go, which covers Southeast Asia, Hong Kong, and Taiwan but no release dates have been announced.

Weeks after India Securities and Exchange Board (SEBI) barred Zee Entertainment Enterprises (ZEEL), top executives from holding managerial or directorial positions, Sony responded. On June 12, SEBI barred Punit Goenka and Subhash Chandra, MD-CEO and chairman emeritus of media giant ZEEL, from holding any managerial or directorial positions in listed companies. The suspension is while SEBI carries out investigations into allegations of insider trading. ZEE has challenged the SEBI order at the Securities Appellate Tribunal and the matter will be heard on June 26.

Paramount+’s Korean drama crime thriller Bargain a six-part adaptation of director Lee Chung-hyun’s short film of the same name staring Jun Jong-Seo (Money Heist: Korea) and Jin Seon-kyu (Extreme Job) won the Best Screenplay award at Cannes Series earlier in the year.

Asia Satellite Telecommunications (AsiaSat) has moved into content distribution with the acquisition of Hong Kong- and U.K.-based TV distributor Lightning International. AsiaSat intention was stated as a move to expand the company’s services and reach global audiences through new distribution platforms. AsiaSat will be acquiring 100% of Lightning International, but other terms of the deal were not disclosed.

IndiHome TV is part of Telkom Indonesia’s nationwide fixed broadband service, which reaches around one million active monthly subscribers and has selected Ateme’s OTT solutions to expand their headend and add extra channels. Ateme’s TITAN transcoders and NEA Just-in-Time packagers deliver a superior experience with low latency and vivid images.

Europe: French streaming service Canal+ will take a significant minority stake in Asian streaming firm Viu and could become the majority owner. Viu wants to partner strategically with Canal+ in Asia, the Middle East, and Africa. Canal+ will pay $200 million for a 26.1% stake in Viu and make a staggered investment of $300 million. Viu has over 66 million monthly active users and 12 million paid subscribers. It ranks second behind Disney+ regarding subscribers and streaming minutes between global and regional players.

Prime Video’s expansion across Europe has driven home entertainment revenues up 22% to £3.5 billion ($4.5 billion). Amazon Digital U.K. shows that for the year ending December 2022, revenue increased by over £633 million. Its primary sources of income came from subscriptions, digital sales, and rentals, as well as marketing support services to other Amazon companies.

NBCUniversal intends to expand its One Platform advertising, technology, data, and measurement system further into global markets through an alliance with international broadcast and tech partners. The announcement came at the Cannes Lions advertising convention. The alliance includes international partners Atresmedia, Bell Media, Seven West Media, Sky Media, Talpa Network, TF1 Group, Tokyo Broadcasting System, and Omnicom Media Group.

Ana Maria Orozco - GUILLERMO LEGARIA / Stringer

Latin America: Ana María Orozco and Jorge Enrique Abello will reprise their roles in Yo Soy Betty, La Fea (Ugly Betty) in Betty La Fea, a sequel set to bow on Amazon’s Prime Video in 2024. The series' third season picks up Betty’s story 20 years later. Still married to Armando (Abello) and trying to rebuild her relationship with her daughter, she battles the economic crisis of her family company and wonders whether her life path has made her happy. The series will be directed by Mauricio Cruz Fortuna and is written by Marta Betoldi, Juan Carlos Pérez, and César Betancur.

Middle East: Dubai-based streamer OSN launched its rebranded OSN+ streaming service in March 2022 while retaining its edge against the launch of Disney+ in June. OSN remains a leading service for prime Hollywood scripted content in 22 territories across the Middle East and North Africa. In March 2023, they extended a partnership with Warner Bros. Discovery making them the exclusive home for HBO in the region. Along with Warner Bros., they have retained rights to Paramount+ shows, a slate of Sky Studios, and Peacock Originals produced by NBC Universal. They recently expanded their exclusive partnership with ITV Studios in the U.K.