Afrikaans commentary under threat on SuperSport?
· The South African
Recently, there have been a variety of headlines about how the decision-making of new group owner of MultiChoice, France’s CANAL+, could have a massive impact of the nature of the broadcast product in South Africa.
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With CANAL+ reportedly looking at cost-cutting measures, decisions about which sports to carry – on SuperSport for example – are now made directly from Paris, France.
Earlier this month an announcement was made to reassure Springbok fans that “SA Rugby and the CANAL+ Group have discussed and planned a continued partnership with SuperSport”.
However, Trade union Solidarity has questioned whether Afrikaans commentary could be coming under threat.
Commentary in different languages such as Afrikaans has been a key offering for SuperSport viewers
In an open letter, Solidarity referenced the ongoing Proteas tour of New Zealand, where Afrikaans commentary has allegedly not been part of the broadcast options on SuperSport.
“Without any public consultation, a decision was made that the only commentary language for the tour would be English,” said Pieter Jordaan, head of news and publicity at Solidarity.
Jordaan also suggested that Afrikaans commentary and analysis also seemed to be devalued during important games during the recent SA20 cricket tournament and other cricket broadcasts
“Afrikaans commentators were seldom, if ever, present at the ground alongside their English (or isiXhosa) counterparts to provide live analysis,” he said.
“To treat the Afrikaans viewing community in this way, by offering a product that is of a secondary standard, inevitably raises questions about SuperSport’s attitude towards its Afrikaans audience.”
Changing landscape
With changes clearly raising some level of concern, SA Rugby executives recently met with their CANAL+ Group counterparts at the MultiChoice offices in Johannesburg, where both entities discussed strategic plans to bring rugby fans and viewers closer to the game through the existing broadcast partnership.
Rendani Ramovha, CANAL+ Director for Sports Content in English and Portuguese-speaking Africa, said there would be a continuation of the existing partnership with SA Rugby.
“Rugby plays an important role in the sports package we deliver to our CANAL+ Africa SA Pay-TV audience and the partnership with SA Rugby is crucial to delivering the very best in local and international rugby.
“We are excited to engage with the rugby governing body to find ways to deliver the sport to audiences across many different touchpoints: linear television, streaming, digital and social media.
“The robust and engaging discussions were aimed at ensuring that the viewer gets the ultimate rugby viewing experience, courtesy of this SuperSport partnership. We cannot wait for the viewers and DStv subscribers to experience all that we have in store this year, leading up to the Springboks’ title defence in Australia next year.”