Comcast Looking To Make A Bid For Both Warner Bros. Discovery And UK Based Broadcaster ITV

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Comcast’s European pay-TV business Sky is in talks to acquire U.K. TV giant ITV’s media and entertainment (M&E) unit.

In a statement early Friday morning London time, ITV said it “is in preliminary discussions regarding a possible sale of its M&E business to Sky for an enterprise value of £1.6 billion,” which translates to $2.1 billion.  

The M&E business includes ITV’s commercial free-to-air TV channels in the U.K., as well as its ITVX streaming platform. Its revenue for the first nine months of 2025 was down 5 percent from the year-ago period to £1.45 billion ($1.90 billion).

Not part of a deal would be production powerhouse ITV Studios, which produces such shows as Love Island, Britain’s Got Talent, and the Harlan Coben Netflix hit series Fool Me Once, among many others. ITV Studios has been the topic of much deal chatter in recent years, with the likes of Banijay, All3Media parent RedBird IMI, and others being cited as potential buyers.

Sky is led by CEO Dana Strong. It not only operates pay-TV and streaming businesses in the U.K., Ireland and Italy, but has also been growing its telecom offerings, such as broadband and mobile phone operations. Sky also owns the production arm Sky Studios, which is led by Cécile Frot-Coutaz and has been growing its investment in original content creation. Recent Sky Studios productions have included the likes of Mary & George, starring Julianne Moore, The Tattooist of Auschwitz, starring Harvey Keitel, and The Day of the Jackal, starring Eddie Redmayne and Lashana Lynch.

While confirming overnight reports of deal talks, ITV on Friday also emphasized that a transaction for its M&E division with Comcast’s Sky may ultimately not come together. “There can be no certainty as to the terms upon which any potential sale may be agreed or whether any transaction will take place,” its statement highlighted. “A further announcement will be made in due course if appropriate.”

lTV is led by CEO Carolyn McCall. The news of the deal talks came after ITV said on Thursday that it was planning $46 million in “temporary,” or “one-off,” cost savings amid “softer” advertising demand in the fourth quarter.

Comcast’s potential play for parts of ITV comes at a time when it also seems to be exploring a potential bid for parts of Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD). Overnight reports said that Comcast has hired Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley to evaluate a possible deal for the David Zaslav-led Hollywood conglomerate’s studio and streaming businesses, following WBD’s recent decision to explore various deal options.

Ginx eSports TV CEO Steps Down After 13 Years

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Long-time CEO of gaming media company Ginx TV Michiel Bakker has announced his departure and is set to leave the company at the end of June.

Bakker made the announcement via LinkedIn, and while he did not share any future plans, he did mention that he is leaving the company with “mixed emotions.”

Founded in 2007, Ginx TV is a media company based in the United Kingdom. The company is known for its television channel, one of the world’s first TV channels focused strictly on gaming content. The company’s main channel has been rebranded to Ginx Esports TV in 2016, reflecting a shift towards esports. Apart from television, Ginx operates a gaming and esports news website, Ginx.tv.

Michiel Bakker first joined Ginx TV when the company was only three years old, in 2010. During his time at the company, Ginx has partnered with numerous esports, gaming, and other brands, and became an international company with a presence in many countries.

Bakker did not explain the exact reasons for his departure, but he did note that it is “high time for a fresh perspective, new ideas, and someone else to take the reins” of the media company. He added that change is a vital part of progress, and that he is proud of the work he did during his time at Ginx.

Ginx TV did not share news of Bakker’s replacement, but he did say that he is now “embarking on a new chapter in life.”

Bakker said the following via social media: “After an incredible 13-year journey at Ginx TV Ltd, it is with mixed emotions that I announce my departure from the company at the end of this month. It has been an honour and a privilege to serve as the CEO of Ginx, and I am immensely proud of what we have achieved together.

“One of the most important lessons I have learned in my professional career is that change is vital for growth and progress. It is high time for a fresh perspective, new ideas, and someone else to take the reins.”

Roundups #143: Zig & Sharko Renewed For A Fourth Season On Cartoonito, Young Rock To Make His Freemium Debut On e.tv And ITV Choice Has Been Relaunched On Samsung TV Plus

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Zig and Sharko are back for more gags

Xilam Animation, an independent company for the production and distribution of animated programmes, Academy Award-nominated, has secured its first wave of deals for the upcoming fourth season of its iconic non-dialogue slapstick comedy series Zig & Sharko (78 x 7’), as the company prepares to debut the first episode to buyers at MIPCOM.

Launching in September 2023, season four has been acquired by longstanding partner Gulli (France), which has also renewed its partnership across the previous three seasons. Additionally, Xilam has sold the new instalment to existing partners, VRT (Belgium), Discovery (Italy), DeA (Italy), Nickelodeon (India) and Nova (Israel).

Zig & Sharko continues to generate impressive ratings internationally, particularly in India where the series resulted in Nickelodeon becoming the leading children’s channel in its evening slot, across all demos. In Q2 2022, Zig & Sharko was also the fourth best performing series among children aged 2-14 years and outperformed its lead in and lead out shows in all demos in terms of ratings.

The series is currently seen on Boomerang (soon to be Cartoonito). Apparently, the channel wasn't mentioned when news came it meaning the show could have ended after 3 seasons on the channel or they're just taking long to pick it up in any case further episodes are on Boing.

Regular Nick:
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Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson expresses his charm in new sitcom

e.tv, South Africa's most reliable and free source for English entertainment at the moment home to various local and international productions has acquired rights to NBC's Young Rock currently viewed on M-Net and sister channel, Me.

The sitcom is set in a frame story where Johnson is running as a candidate in the 2032 United States presidential election. Each episode involves Johnson participating in an interview or other conversation which leads him to flashback to a story from one of three periods of Johnson's life (with occasional episodes where all three periods are shown).

In the first season, Johnson is depicted as a ten-year-old in Hawaii; as a high school student in Pennsylvania; and as a college student and football player at the University of Miami.

The series stars Dwayne Johnson, Joseph Lee Anderson, Stacey Leilua, Ana Tuisila, Adrian Groulx, Bradley Constant, Uli Latukefu and Matthew Willig. It is expected to air Saturdays at 19:30 replacing Superstore from March 4th - no update on Grown-ish yet.

Openview Plus:
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ITV Studios and Samsung TV Plus collaborate to launch a number of projects across Europe

ITV Studios had announced a raft of sales and pre-sales deals across its catalogue of scripted and non-scripted content. One of which, Samsung TV Plus launched ITV Choice showcasing the best of ITV Studios including Hell’s Kitchen, Four Weddings and Come Dine With Me.

During the week, ITV Studios expanded their partnership to include a bouquet of channels.

One of the channels is a ‘Hell’s Kitchen’ channel, which will air episodes round-the-clock from the popular U.S. Gordon Ramsay show. The other channel – Storylands – will “become the home for the best European drama” according to ITV Studios. Shows on the channel will be produced by labels which are part of ITV Studios and include dramas such as Norwegian legal series Aber Bergen, the period drama Un Village Français, and the procedural crime drama from the producers of Gomorrah, called Masantonio.

The move follows ITV Studios’ launch of four non-scripted YouTube channels last year – Our World, Our Life, Our Stories and Our Histories. The agreement will see Samsung TV Plus –  Samsung’s free ad-supported app – broadcast content from the ITV Studios catalogue 24/7 across all Samsung Smart TVs made in 2016 and onwards, as well as select Galaxy devices.

Ruth Berry, Managing Director at ITV Studios Global Distribution, commented: “We are very excited to partner with Samsung TV Plus to launch FAST channels in EMEA. We have an amazing library of 90,000+ hours of IP and the FAST/AVOD space is a key strategic focus for ITV Studios as we look to provide global audiences with new ways to access some of our best-known scripted brands, formats and non-scripted entertainment content.”

Video Entertainment:
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Roundups #120: Lioness Returns For A New Season On M-Net, The Proud Family: Louder And Prouder Gets Season 2 Renewal And BritBox To Add Two New Doccies To Their Lineup

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Another local drama gets a season 2 renewal

Shannon Esra returns to TV screens as Samantha Hugo when M-Net's (DStv 101) edgy thriller drama, Lioness, returns for its second season next year.

Lioness returns for season 2 on 16 January. It follows the story of a woman fresh out of jail for fraud and returning to a life even more fractured than when she left.

"After the cliffhanger finale of season 1, season 2 picks up with Adrian Hugo's (played by Jacques Bessenger) second wife (played by Carla Classen) in desperate search for her missing husband," a press statement reads. "The fiercely protective mother (as the titular "lioness") that she is, Samantha must shield her son Liam (played by Joshua Eady), no matter the cost."

DStv Flex:
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- What to expect this January on Qwest TV?
- Reviewing major changes coming soon to the SABC
- What to expect this December on TNT?

The Proud Family is back on Disney+

The Proud Family: Louder & Prouder fans rejoice as the Proud Family revival gets renewed for season 2!

But, before we delve deeper into what we know about the upcoming new season on Disney+, we have to mention that the series is unquestionably making its mark as it recently won the Outstanding Casting for An Animated Program award at the first Children’s & Family Emmy Awards.

Season 2 of The Proud Family: Louder & Prouder will hit the airwaves in February and is expected to feature a stellar list of new guest stars. According to JustJaredJr.com, here are some of the voices that we can expect to hear in upcoming new episodes and the names of the characters that they will portray.

- Gabrielle Union as Talia Rouge
- Chance the Rapper as Darrius St. Vil
- Normani as Giselle
- Leslie Odom Jr. as Kwame
- Anthony Anderson as Ray Ray
- Gymnasts Dominique Dawes, Gabby Douglas and - Laurie Hernandez as themselves
- Holly Robinson Peete as Dr. Lord
- Maury Povich as himself
- Storm Reid as Emily
- Courtney B. Vance as Merlin Kelly
- Liana Mendoza as Singing Judge

Regular Nick:
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BritBox picks up two British actor documentaries

The Ghost of Richard Harris debuted in September 2022 at the Venice Film Festival. The actor is known to modern viewers best as the Original Dumbledore, but he had a long career before Harry Potter, including starring in the Oscar-nominated This Sporting Life and Camelot. However, he was even better known for his hard-partying ways, with a reputation for drinking and riotous behavior.

The documentary will feature his children, who followed in his footsteps to Hollywood, including Jared Harris (The Crown), Jamie Harris (Carnival Row), and director Damian Harris (Brave The Dark), as well as co-stars Vanessa Redgrave and Dick Cavett, and his late wife, Elizabeth Harris.

Peter O’Toole – Along the Sky Road to Aqaba only just debuted recently at the end of November 2022 in Spain. Directed by Jim Sheridan, who ironically also appears in The Ghost of Richard Harris, the documentary is structured into four acts, each introduced by a quote from or about the Lawrence of Arabia star to encapsulate that period of his life.

Nominated seven times for Best Actor, the new documentary covers everything about O'Toole from his self-belief to his alcoholism, using his own words, gleaned from 100s of hours of footage, allowing him to act as a narrator for his own life. It also includes interviews with O’Toole’s family, artists, actors, and directors, including Sir Kenneth Branagh, Brian Cox, Stephen Fry, Sir Anthony Hopkins, and Sir Derek Jacobi.

YouTube Premium:
- VH1 is making a comeback to international shores through BET
- DStv Streama bundles Disney+
- The Walt Disney Company to expand the reach of Star Channel
- Acorn TV shutting down in South Africa
- TelkomOne rebrands into SABC+
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The History Of A Former DStv Channel, Carlton's SelecTV

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Carlton Select was UK's leading entertainment channel owned by Carlton Television. It originally launched in June 1995 as SelecTV, by the independent production company of the same name, before being purchased by Carlton in 1997 who relaunched it as Carlton Select.

During 1985-1991, the channel was part of a bid for an ITV franchise after the Independent Broadcasting Authority (IBA) prevented them from purchasing Thames Television and were only fortunate to provide a news service to the channel.

 

Other aspects that occurred in that timeframe was the purchase of Ladbrokes (Central), the sports betting company owning up to 30% which finally gave them its first stake in a terrestrial broadcasting company.

During 1992-1994, Carlton launched a news station London News Network as part of a joint venture with London Weekend Television broadcasting news and other regional content and acquired full ownership of Ladbrokes.

They also faced some heavy backlash from the Independent Television Communication (ITC) for providing a wide range of "unimpressive and very disappointing" programmes for the ITV network which were "neither distinctive nor noticeable high quality".

 

 

Between 1995 and 1996, Carlton launched its first channel Carlton Food Network and SelectTV was introduced broadcasting various content from their Food Network alongside other content like Airline, Birds Of A Feather, The Golden Girls and Yesterday's Dreams.

It also formed part of DStv's initial offering when it was introduced in 1995 and was eventually purchased by Pearson a year later.

SelecTV programming traced back to the 80s and Carlton Select was introduced in 1997 as part of an attempt to change the image of the channel of course there was not much difference from either one as the timelines were kind of close to each other.

Things were only moving up for Carlton as they were able to launch DTT platform British Digital Broadcasting as part of a joint venture with British Sky Broadcasting (BSkyB) before having full control as ITC forced BSkyB to retract and purchased a Racks Film Distributor which had  740 films in their collection.

 

 

In 1998, The Guardian publishes a series of articles alleging the wholesale fabrication of a 1996 Carlton documentary, The Connection which had purported to film the route by which heroin was smuggled into the United Kingdom from Colombia. An internal inquiry at Carlton found that The Guardian's allegations were in large part correct and the ITC, fines Carlton £2million for multiple breaches of the UK's broadcasting codes.

Around that period, BSkyB launched their DTT service carrying their set of channels alongside Carlton Select, Carlton Food Network (another DStv channel) and new entries Carlton Kids, Carlton Cinema and Carlton World.

A year after the launch, Carlton began phasing out the company name from all their products and it wasn't until the 2000s that Carlton Select, Carlton World, Carlton Kids were eventually discontinued.

Carlton World followed shortly after and Carlton Food Network became a joint venture with Sainsbury to form Taste CFN which lasted a year leaving Carlton with a movie channel, Carlton Cinema.

 

Carlton partnered up with BSkyB (now Granada PLC or Sky UK) to launch ITV Digital from existing brands and that lasted a few months as well. Granada PLC had various brands which were scrapped for ITV1.

Carlton Cinema ceased transmission and in 2003 the Carlton brand was no more as it merged with Granada PLC to form ITV PLC. All the products from Carlton were credited to ITV.

ITV PLC went on to form an international channel ITV Choice (formerly Granada UKTV, Granada TV and ITV Granada) which some may see as a reincarnation to SelecTV and various other entertainment channels from the two former brands.

Just like every other carnation, ITV Choice was eventually discontinued by 2020 in its last region Africa. There hasn't been a reason for the sudden dismal in various other markets but the local provider in Africa being MultiChoice opted to supply their content to various other channels.

 

ITV Choice brought shows like Emmerdale, Coronation Street, Tipping Point, The Jonathon Ross Show, The Chase and Doc Martin. Modern and original programming that past counterparts had the misfortune of excluding.

In the end, ITV hasn't been successful in the linear space with the likes of BBC and regional providers. Of course, ITV provides various channels in the UK with Ginx TV also being British being the only linear channel available internationally.

But if you look at it the content can be viewed on multiple stations globally so that has to count for something.

Britbox Video Streamer To Launch In South Africa Later In The Year With Content From ITV And BBC

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Another video streaming service will be launching in South Africa in the second half of 2021 with BritBox, the joint 50/50 streaming venture between BBC Studios and ITV, that announced that it will become accessible to South African consumers later this year.

BritBox, an ad-free subscription video-on-demand (SVOD) streaming service will join the quickly getting crowded video streaming market in South Africa where Netflix SA fiercely compete with the likes of MultiChoice's Showmax, VIU, Vodacom Video Play, TelkomONE, Amazon Prime Video and Apple TV+.

Meanwhile the South African public broadcaster is working on launching its own SABC streaming service, while Discovery+, Paramount+, HBO Max and Disney+ are still to launch in the territory and across the rest of Africa as well.

BritBox will serve as somewhat of a replacement for the ITV Choice channel and the BBC First channel that both shuttered on MultiChoice's DStv satellite pay-TV platform during 2020.

BritBox carries on-demand content in the form of British box sets, drama premieres and live events, as well as new and exclusive original commissions.

South Africa will be BritBox's 5th worldwide territory to launch in, following launches in the United States and Canada, the United Kingdom and Australia.

"The launch of BritBox in South Africa is yet another step in the platform’s trajectory towards international expansion. We’re delighted to bring the service to a brand new territory and continue towards establishing BritBox as a premium VOD brand across the world," says Martin Goswami, ITV group strategic partnership and distribution director, in a statement.

Paul Dempsey, president of global distribution at BBC Studios, says "We know that South African audiences have a real connection to British television and we can’t wait to bring them even more great shows, on-demand, that we know they will love".

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