The Oscar Pistorius Trial: a Carte Blanche channel

Press release issued this morning:

MultiChoice to launch pop-up Oscar Pistorius trial channel on DStv.

On Sunday, 2 March 2014, MultiChoice will launch a 24-hour pop-up channel on DStv Channel 199. The Oscar Pistorius Trial: A Carte Blanche Channel will feature round-the-clock coverage of the legal proceedings, as well as exclusive documentaries, profiles and in-depth expert analysis.

This is the first time DStv is using a pop-up channel to cover a major news event. “We previously added dedicated channels for special events such as Idols and Big Brother. This pop-up channel will give our viewers in-depth coverage of the Oscar Pistorius trial, with a rich variety of content and social media integration,” says Aletta Alberts, Head of Content for MultiChoice.

The channel will be put together by the producers of Carte Blanche, well known for their excellence in investigative journalism. “The Carte Blanche producers were the obvious choice to create and package the channel. Their mantra of ‘You have the right to see it all’ ensures viewers will get fair and balanced coverage of the trail,” Alberts added.

The channel will be available exclusively to DStv Premium, Extra and Compact customers. The Oscar Pistorius Trial: A Carte Blanche Channel will be a conduit to the inside information on the most talked about and controversial subject in recent South African history.

Pistorius’ criminal trial is scheduled to run in the Pretoria High Court from Monday, 3 March to Thursday, 20 March 2014. The trial judge will decide whether any part of the trial will be broadcast live closer to the start date.

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Let's analyse:

First time ever something like this is put together and the Carte Blanche team involved.

It is going to be interesting to see how the Cart Blanche team will manage going from their well structured news magazine   show to providing rolling coverage.

One has to wonder if these guys have enough time to man the channel AND to continue putting together such a high quality weekly show.

While the channel will be available for Compact and upwards, the show itself (and thus the brand), is premium exclusive, meaning a great deal of their potential audience is unfamiliar with their product and thus are likely to stay with their current news provider of choice. However, considring that the channel is sandwitched between both SS Blitz and Big Brother Mzansi, both of which are hugely popular on the lesser packages, they are definitely counting on people to channel surf in the region

 It is also going to be interesting to see how exactly this 'pop up channel' concept will work as it is being described as the channel will "disappear" if there is nothing going on. Disappear as in go the message that says 'Service Not Available' or disappear as in a static on air graphic. The channl also cannot do these disappearing acts too often otherwise the viewers wont enjoy it.

This can only lead to greater things from these guys in the future as we gt to see what Cart Blanche is really capable of.