Why are the channels numbers changing?

We are moving DStv services to a new satellite, which will give us more space to offer you more channels and services in future. To do that, we need to move some channels around to make space for these future channels and services.

Whilst it may take some getting used to, we trust that the new channel numbering will make for an overall better navigation and viewing experience on DStv.

When is the change happening?

Early the morning of Monday, 1 October 2012 – most of the new channels will come into effect at 6am. The new M-Net Movie channels will launch from 10:30 on Monday, 1 October 2012.

Will I miss any of my shows when you change the channel numbers?

The changes will happen automatically and shouldn’t interrupt your viewing.

Do DStv customers need to do anything to get the new channel numbers and the new channels?

The changes will happen automatically in the early morning hours of Monday, 1 October. DStv customers are advised to access the information about their specific decoder on DStv.com or press OK on their DStv remote to see if any action is required on their part.

Customers who live in a complex or flat where they don’t have their own dish, will have to request their body corporate to upgrade their system before 1 October 2012. These customers can SMS their email address to DStv at 32444.

When will the TV Guides be updated?

The October Dish Magazine will reflect the updated channel numbers.

The online and mobile TV Guides will update within hours of the change on 1 October.

The TV Guides on the decoders will be updated within hours of the change on 1 October.

Now that the SD and HD channels sit on the same channel number (except for SuperSport channels), what’s the difference between the SD version of a channel and the HD version of the same channel?

The SD and HD channels which sit on the same channel number have exactly the same content. The only difference is the broadcast quality of the channel. The content including the soundtrack, the programme schedules and aspect ratio of the broadcasts will be identical.

M-Net Movie Channels

Tell me more about the new themed movie channels?

M-Net Movies Premiere

The crème-de-la-crème of big budget, hit movies await on the M-Net Movies Premiere channel. This is where Hollywood royalty lives and where you can find the freshest movies appearing on TV for the first time. Movies will be screened first on this channel before moving to the relevant themed channel.

M-Net Movies Comedy

Relax, put your feet up and prepare to laugh till it hurts. Whether you like your comedies tinged with romance, drama, slapstick humour or a little on the naughty side, the comedy channel will leave you in stitches.

M-Net Movies Family

Wholesome entertainment for all ages awaits with the family channel. A fun and enjoyable lineup featuring animation, musicals, fantasy and feel-good family movies will keep both kids and the young at heart engrossed all day.

M-Net Movies Action+

Escape on an adventure, discover what lies in the far reaches of Space, fight the bad guys and save the world. M-Net Movies Action+ will take you there with a host of blockbuster movies from Action to Westerns, Horror and Sci-Fi.

M-Net Movies Drama & Romance

Get swept away by an enchanting love story, or lost in a heart wrenching drama. The drama and romance channel features a variety of new and entertaining content including biographies, thrillers, documentaries and war movies.

M-Net Movies Showcase

Revisit your most magical movie moments and discover new ones with the Showcase channel. M-Net Movies shines the spotlight on specific movies and directors with exciting festivals, themes and box sets. Plus you get to take control with viewers’ choices.

What about the other M-Net movie channels that are already on DStv?

MM1 and MM2 are changing into themed channels – MM1 is changing to M-Net Movies Premiere and MM2 is changing into M-Net Movies Drama & Romance.

M-Net Action

Do high speed car chases, massive explosions, hot woman, ripped action stars and giant bloodthirsty mutant animals make your world go round? With the M-Net Movies Action channel you’ll find everything to keep you glued to your lazy boy.

M-Net Stars

Your best loved actors and movies shine brightly on M-Net Movies Stars. Featuring cult classics and movie favourites from past and present across a variety of genres from comedy to drama and romance, it’s the channel for young and old alike.

How will movies be screened across these channels?

A new blockbuster movie will be screened on M Premiere first and will then move to the appropriate themed channel. Some new niche movies will also be screened first on some themed channels.

The movies on M-Net Movies follow a cascading pattern of broadcast. This means that there are two movies starting every half hour.  M Premiere and M Movies Drama & Romance have a movie each at 18:30, M Comedy and M Showcase have a movie each at 19:00, M Family and M Action have a movie each at 19:30.

How do the movies on M-Net Movies Premiere work?

Every Friday, there are four new first-to-television movies from 18:30 until 00:30 with the biggest movie of the week on Fridays at 20:30.

In addition to this, the M-Net Sunday night blockbuster movie will still be screened at 20:00 on M-Net. This movie will also be broadcast at 20:30 that same evening on M Premiere.

Soundtracks

What kind of soundtracks will be available on the movie channels?

The family and original soundtrack will always be available. When available for a particular movie, the surround sound option will be included. Please take note of the slide at the start of each movie and also on the EPG itself.

Will Dolby 5.1 be available on all HD channels?

Where the Dolby 5.1 soundtrack is made available by the studios it will be played out. In all other cases, HD channels will carry Dolby 2. Please take note of the EPG on the specific programme or movie.

What about Hearing Impaired subtitles on the new M-Net movie channels – both HD and SD?

Where it is available, the HI subtitles will be played out. There will be a slide at the start of each movie, as well as an indication on the EPG.

M-Net has undertaken to provide all new content with HI subtitles.

We are working with all channels on the DStv platform to provide HI subtitles for our hearing impaired subscribers on all channels. Unfortunately HI subtitles are not readily available on all content, especially older content.

Decoders

I use a single view decoder. How will the channel renumbering impact me?

Channel number changes – your decoder should automatically switch to the new channel numbers at the time of the change. If the channel numbers on your decoder are incorrect, we recommend a simple reboot (switch power off at the wall, wait 20 seconds and then power up again). Do not interrupt the process and wait for normal video & audio to resume

Reminders – once the change has taken place, we recommend that you delete all reminders for those channels that have changed numbers and schedule them again to ensure that you don’t miss out on your favourite programmes.

Favourite Channels* – the impact will depend on which channels you have selected as your favourites. We recommend that you check and make any required changes to Favourite Channels once the channel changes have taken place.

Parental Control – if you have used the Parental Control feature to block channels, we recommend that you check that the correct channels remain blocked. To check these – press MENU, select Parental Control, enter the PG PIN and then select Channel Blocking

*The Favourite Channels feature is only available on selected single view decoders

I use a dual view decoder. How will the channel renumbering impact me?

Making the changes – the decoder should automatically switch to the new channel numbers at the time of the change. If the channel numbers on your decoder are incorrect, we recommend a simple reboot (switch power off at the wall, wait 20 seconds and then power up again). Do not interrupt the process and wait for normal video & audio to resume

Reminders – once the change has taken place, we recommend that you delete all reminders for those channels that have changed numbers and schedule them again to ensure that you don’t miss out on your favourite programmes.

Parental Control – if you have used the Parental Control feature to block channels, we recommend that you check that the correct channels remain blocked. To check these – press MENU, select Parental Control, enter the PG PIN and then select Channel Blocking

I use an IP decoder. How will the channel renumbering impact me?

Making the changes – the decoder should automatically switch to the new channel numbers at the time of the change. If the channel numbers on your decoder are incorrect, we recommend a simple reboot (switch power off at the wall, wait 20 seconds and then power up again). Do not interrupt the process and wait for normal video & audio to resume (TN, please confirm that all IP single views will rescan on reboot, otherwise change this to rescan steps)

Reminders – once the change has taken place, we recommend that you delete all reminders for those channels that have changed numbers and schedule them again to ensure that you don’t miss out on your favourite programmes.

Parental Control – if you have used the Parental Control feature to block channels, we recommend that you check that the correct channels remain blocked.

I use the SD PVR. How will the channel renumbering impact me?

Making the changes – the PVR should automatically switch to the new channel numbers at the time of the change. If the channel numbers on your PVR are incorrect, we recommend a simple reboot (switch power off at the wall, wait 20 seconds and then power up again). Do not interrupt the process and wait for normal video & audio to resume.

Reminders – once the change has taken place, we recommend that you delete all reminders for those channels that have changed numbers and schedule them again to ensure that you don’t miss out on your favourite programmes.

Favourite Channels – the impact will depend on which channels you have selected as your favourites. We recommend that you check and make any required changes to Favourite Channels once the channel changes have taken place.

Scheduled Recordings – due to the change in channel numbers (and the order of channels), you will need to delete and reschedule all recordings. This applies to all scheduled recordings, including Time Based Recordings.

Playlist – there will be no impact to recordings that have already taken place. The information for the channels will reflect the original channel number and not the new one.

DStv On Demand and BoxOffice – the channel changes will have no impact on these features.

Parental Control – if you have used the Parental Control feature to block channels, we recommend that you check that the correct channels remain blocked. To check these – press MENU, select Parental Control, enter the PG PIN and then select Channel Blocking (TN please confirm menu name)

I use the HD PVR. How will the channel renumbering impact me?

Making the changes – the PVR should automatically switch to the new channel numbers at the time of the change. If the channel numbers on your PVR are incorrect, we recommend a simple reboot (switch power off at the wall, wait 20 seconds and then power up again). Do not interrupt the process and wait for normal video & audio to resume.

Duplicate channels – there will no longer be duplicate channels on the HD PVR.  Previously, if a channel was available in both standard definition (SD) and high definition (HD), these two versions would have been on separate channel numbers.

As an example : M-Net in standard definition (SD) has been on channel 101, while M-Net in high definition (HD) has been on channel 170.

Now, M-Net will only have one channel number (101) and the PVR will use your subscription to determine whether you get access to the SD or HD version.

Reminders – there will be no impact to reminders

Favourite Channels – the impact will depend on which channels you have selected as your favourites. We recommend that you check and make any required changes to Favourite Channels once the channel changes have taken place.

Scheduled Recordings (excluding series recordings) – although there should be no impact, we recommend that you check the scheduled recording screen for changes once the channel changes have taken place.

Series Recordings – unfortunately, these will need to be deleted and then rescheduled. Our apologies for the inconvenience. To delete your series recordings – press RED, then LEFT or RIGHT arrow to the Scheduled Recordings screen, then press YELLOW for series recordings and delete each entry by pressing RED.

Playlist – there will be no impact to recordings that have already taken place. The information for the channels will reflect the original channel number and not the new one

DStv On Demand and BoxOffice – the channel changes will have no impact on these features.

Parental Control – if you have used the Parental Control feature to block channels, we recommend that you check that the correct channels remain blocked. To check these – press MENU, select Parental Control, enter the PG PIN and then select Channel Blocking

The time to enter for the eighth season of Idols is rapidly running out.

After record entries in Johannesburg, Durban and Cape Town over the past three weekends, the final auditions for Idols Season 8 will be held at the Walter Sisulu Hall in Kliptown, Soweto, this Saturday, 25 February.

“We have already seen some absolutely amazing singers in Jo’burg, Durban and Cape Town,” says M-Net Communications Manager Lani Lombard. “And we’re incredibly excited about the Soweto audience. Idols reached a much broader audience last year, as a result of the simulcast on Mzansi Magic.

We trust that many more undiscovered singers are now aware of the power of Idols and will be at the auditions to take a shot at fame. Idols is all about unearthing new talent and who knows, maybe we find the next Idol this weekend.”

As in previous years, entrants must be at least 16 years old and no older than 30 on the day of their auditions, and all contestants must present a valid I.D. document to enter. A parent or a legal guardian must accompany entrants younger than 18 years of age.

Prospective Idols are advised to arrive early to register and to make sure they are available for call-backs over the whole weekend, if necessary.

On Saturday [25 February] entrants will be screened by preliminary judges of highly skilled musos and if they’re deemed promising they will have to return the next day to sing for a panel of television and music professionals. Only the very best contestants will be invited back in March to perform for the Idols judges.

Season 8 of Idols is a co-production between M-Net and Mzansi Magic and will be broadcast on both channels from June 2012.

Updates and further information can be found on the official Idols Facebook page at “Idols South Africa”, on Twitter @IdolsSA and on the official Idols Season 8 website at www.mnet.co.za/idols.

TRACE Urban looks back at the most powerful couple and new parents in the music industry, Jay-Z and Beyoncé.

Guest Star reveals how the American rap tycoon and R&B diva have succeeded in keeping their private life separate from their public image.

While many celebrity couples sell pictures of their newborn babies for millions, none has yet surfaced of Beyoncé and Jay-Z’s baby, Blue Ivy Carter.

The pair has kept its private life under wraps for a decade now. Nothing has managed to spoil the story of this idyllic couple, not even persistent rumours.

Guest Star provides an even closer look at today’s hottest artists with pictures, news and exclusive interviews with the favourite stars of the younger generation.

In-depth, up-front and behind-the-scenes…Guest Star lets you in on the secret lives of the stars, in a way only they can reveal.

Broadcast: Wednesday, February 15, 10pm.

Repeat: Friday 16 at 7 pm, Saturday 17 at 0.45 pm and Sunday 18 at 6 pm.

Taylor needs this job, she doesn’t have any other source of income period.”
Kelsey Grammer’s ex-wife Camille will also apparently not be returning next season.

“Producers are asking Lisa Vanderpump, Adrienne Maloof and Kyle Richards if any of their wealthy female friends would be interested in appearing on the show,” an insider from the Bravo network said.

“It’s an open secret that Camille Grammer most likely won’t be back for a third season. She came off as such a b***h during season one, whereas this season she has been very reserved, and she isn’t exactly eager to return.”

Source : Cover Media

Source : Cover Media

This happens a few days after Jay-Z and wife Beyoncé Knowles welcomed their first child Blue Ivy Carter.

According to aceshowbiz.com as the new parents celebrated the birth of their daughter, 50c allegedly tweeted a link to the controversial pictures of the newborn on Tuesday and along with it he wrote, “Yal play to much congratulations to Jayz and Beyonce baby #BlueIvyCarter is georgous.”

However, his representative has defended the star saying he was not trying to stare trouble between him and Jay-Z.

Speaking to Access Hollywood, 50C’s representative claimed that the 36 year old did not post the image to mock the new-born baby, on the contrary; he was actually “trying to discourage his followers from doing so.”

The rapper later followed up the tweet with some clarification. “I would never make a picture like that its all over my time line yal play to much I’m sure Jay is the happiest he’s ever been in his life.”

The “Baby by Me” singer went on sharing with his followers his own memory of being a first-time father. “I remember when Marquise (his son) was born I was so happy. I want to have another kid one day.”

1. Introduction of PVR homes and timeshifted viewing:

The first change will occur on the 19^th of December 2011 where 357 000 PVR homes will be added to the TAMS universe.  Total TV homes will increase by 3.3% whilst DStv homes will show a 13% increase.

Historically TAMS has attributed viewership behavior based on standard decoder homes to represent the total DStv platform (including PVR homes).

This was acceptable whilst the PVR incidence was low, it has however grown rapidly over the past couple of years, and it is now necessary to measure PVR homes as a separate sub-sample within TAMS.

As a first step the DStv PVR universe was removed from TAMS in August 2011 update as a necessary first step to bring PVR and time-shift measurement into the system in December.

In summary the changes that we can expect are the following:

• Afrikaans skewed channels tend to show slight decreases in viewing once the PVR sample and universe are included as a result of this sub-group being more English in profile.
• Timeshifting is more prevalent on M*Net, M*Net Series and Movies 1 and 2 and Vuzu.
• Very little timeshifted viewing occurs on the News and Sports channels.
• Other general entertainment channels such as Universal, Sony do not have a significant amount of timeshifted viewing at a broad level.  However as we dive deeper into the data we expect to find much more variation at a programme level.

2. TAMS universe update (AMPS 2011a)

The AMPS 11a 6 monthly TAMS universe update is planned for the 30^th January 2012.

This will result in a further shift in measured viewing as a result of the ongoing growth of the DStv subscriber base  and in particular Compact subscribers.

Contact your DSTV Media Sales representative on 011 686 6005 for more details .

Kicking off with a new Top Gear special in early 2012, series 18 will follow a maximum of 14 days after the UK transmission of the series, on BBC Entertainment in India, Africa and Latin America and on BBC Knowledge in Poland and Asia.

David Weiland, SVP Programming & TV Channels, BBC Worldwide Channels said: “It’s an important part of our programming strategy to bring as much of our acquired content to air as closely on our global network as it does in the UK.

Top Gear is a hugely popular programme with viewers across all our territories and I’m delighted we are able to bring the latest series to them so close to the UK premiere transmission.”

Sold to almost 200 territories worldwide, Top Gear achieves viewing figures of over six million viewers per episode when it premieres in the UK and is regularly the most downloaded programme on the BBC’s UK iPlayer.

Since 2008, four international versions have been licensed by BBC Worldwide in Australia, Russia, China and USA.

The brand also continues to grow with Top Gear game applications available on iPhone and iPad as well as a dedicated website, topgear.com which, to date, has 5.2 million unique users and 40 million page impressions per month.

Top Gear magazine has 29 separate licenses with South Africa being the latest to launch a publication. Fans can also get their Top Gear fix with a range of Top Gear books and toys as well as the annual Top Gear Live event coming to locations worldwide in 2012.

Do you think you have what it takes to whip up winning dishes under the scrutiny of South Africa’s leading culinary experts? If you can stand the heat in the kitchen, your journey begins today!

M-Net’s Channel Head Pierre Cloete says that the entry process has been made as efficient as possible: “The MasterChef series has proven to be so popular around the world and with M-Net viewers that we expect a lot of interest in the show.

As such, we’ve tried to keep the entry process for wannabe contestants as easy as possible. We have introduced a simple pre-entry mechanism.

All that contestants need to do is fill out their entry forms as accurately as possible, and wait for our notification with more details about auditions. This will allow them a fast-track through the registration process on their audition day. After that it’s purely down to the cooking!”

“Auditions are open to the public who have not pre-entered on the day as well, but M-Net encourages contestants to pre-enter online if they would like to speed up their registration and audition process”, Cloete adds. Online entries close on 14 November.

Contestants who would like to be fast-tracked on the day can enter online on www.mnet.co.za and follow the MasterChef SA links. Once you submit your entry form you will receive an sms and email notification to confirm receipt of your entry. You will then be contacted again by the middle of November to confirm your audition date, venue, time and food specifications for your audition.

Every person who fills out an entry form will be registered for auditions. Alternatively one can complete the entry forms in YOU, Huisgenoot or Drum magazines and follow the instructions indicated in the magazine.

MasterChef South Africa will be holding open auditions in Johannesburg, Durban and Cape Town this December at the following venues:

JOHANNESBURG: Saturday, 3 December at Monte Casino
CAPE TOWN: Saturday, 10 December at The Cullinan, Southern Sun Hotel
DURBAN: Saturday, 17 December at the Sun Coast Hotel and Casino

So how does the selection process work? You will be asked to prepare a cold dish which will be tasted by a member of the MasterChef SA professional preliminary judging panel. There are certain requirements for the dish as stipulated below:

• One must bring all products in an insulated cooler to maintain the cold chain.
• Products not suitably chilled will result in the judges not tasting your dish; which could mean disqualification.
• One must transport all food products in plastic containers.
• Glass containers will not be allowed in the competition area.
• Present your dish on a plain white plate that you have brought with you.
• NO actual cooking is allowed; the dish must be a cold dish.
• All that is required of you is to plate the food on the dish and then present to the judges within the time limit given.

Based on this dish you will either progress further in the audition process or not. All preliminary judges are SACA-certified professionals, and the show’s permanent panel of judges has yet to be announced. Contestants must also be able to make themselves available for possible call-back auditions the following day.

For more information about MasterChef South Africa and how to enter, visit M-Net Website or the MasterChef SA Facebook

SuperSport palmed in seven gold awards, and another six silver, to walk away with top honours at an event that traditionally rewards excellence and creativity.

Promax is the world’s premier association of promotion and marketing professionals in electronic media – those responsible for building audiences and revenues for their organisation.

The Promax awards recognise excellence in on-air promotion, branding and advertising, with winners recognised as the best on the continent.

The awards are open to satellite, cable, broadcast television, radio stations and associated new media, their agencies and production houses.

Judges are local and international people within the industry with over five years of experience.

Among the nominees were SABC1, 2 and 3, eTV, M-Net, DStv, MK, Channel O, MTV Base, BBC Worldwide and Tshwane TV.

THE SUPERSPORT WINNERS
Best themed campaign (Silver – Rugby World Cup).
Best sports promo (Gold – ICC Cricket World Cup).
Best sports campaign (Gold – Rugby World Cup; Silver – Standard Bank Pro 20).
Best special event promo (Gold – Rugby World Cup).
Best use of humour (Silver – Xhosa Commentary).
Best promo not using programme footage (Gold – Rugby World Cup).
Best copy/script writing (Gold – 2011 Look Forward; Silver – US PGA Launch).
SABC integrated marketing campaign award (Gold – Rugby World Cup).
Most outstanding marketing initiative (Gold – Goalmouth).
Best visual FX and composition (Silver – Rugby World Cup).
Most outstanding promo of the year (Silver – Rugby World Cup).