The BBC has confirmed its continued commitment to the African market with the announcement that it is bringing its new suite of BBC-branded channels to the African market.
The channels, BBC Entertainment, BBC Knowledge, BBC Lifestyle and CBeebies, will make their debut on the MultiChoice DStv platform from September 1. They replace the existing entertainment channel BBC Prime and BBC Food.
“Africa has always been of great importance to us, and we are now making a significant investment as we launch four dedicated channel feeds for Africa,” said Dean Possenniskie, General Manager and SVP EMEA, BBC Worldwide Channels . “This new deal with MultiChoice confirms our commitment to the territory, and allows us to deliver a greater range of contemporary, award-winning programming across all four channel genres to loyal BBC viewers in addition to attracting new ones.”
The BBC has been looking to rollout its suite of channels on an international basis, contracts having been signed in Poland and the Far East, however there is some resistance from operators seemingly content with the current full service offer of the established BBC Prime.