BBC Studios Signs Raft Of New Deals With African Broadcasters

The new BBC Studios has announced that it has sold more than 300 hours of programming to broadcasters across Africa. Content that has been sold includes flagship titles like Planet Earth II, Blue Planet II and Hustle.

Since the beginning of the year 2018, the commercial arm of the broadcasting giant said it had signed deals with DSTV NOW, a MultiChoice pay-TV platform, SVOD service Iflix and SABC - the South Africa’s public service broadcaster.

On the deal with DSTV NOW, viewers will be served an “eclectic mix of music and arts programming” which includes titles like Shakespeare Uncovered, Last Night Of The Proms, Art of Scandinavia, and Il Divo: A Musical Affair: Live in Japan.

Reports indicate that SABC has taken up more than 80 hours of programming, including global hits like Top Gear S24, Planet Earth II, Blue Planet II and Go Jetters, a favourite of pre-schoolers. All these contents will premiere for the first time on free-to-air television in South Africa.

According to sources, Iflix, a streaming video-on-demand service has struck a second deal with the BBC Studios, mopping over 100 hours of comedy and drama programming for Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding South Africa). Titles like Hustle S1 – S8, Undercover, Citizen Khan S1 – S5, The Aliens, The Refugees and Undercover will be streamed via their platform.