by Thinus Ferreira

During February DStv’s linear viewership fell to below 1 million viewers for the first time in six years since July 2016, Mzansi Magic’s The Queen shed a third of its audience, SABC2 has a growing ratings problem, while e.tv’s flagship English TV news bulletin at 20:00 is steadily becoming appointment television.

South Africa’s February TV ratings delivered further evidence of how SABC viewership is eroding and e.tv is growing while analogue transmitters are being switched off in the rush to end the digital migration process.

As South Africa’s department of communications and digital technologies and the signal distributor Sentech are on a rushed province-by-province switch-off spree of analogue transmitters, the overall TV ratings of SABC1, SABC2 and SABC3 all sagged further in February, while e.tv – keeping its transmitters on – is showing ongoing ratings growth.

On SABC1, Uzalo with 6.67 million viewers (Jan: 6.99) and Generations – The Legacy with 5.26 million viewers (Jan: 5.3) were still the channel and the country’s two most-watched shows but were both down from January.

e.tv’s Scandal at 4.98 million viewers was that channel’s most-watched show in February and South Africa’s third most-watched show on television.

e.tv is doing so well in the red letter channel’s ratings growth, that House of Zwide with 4.05 million viewers and Imbewu with 3.88 million viewers in February, are now both pulling far more viewers than anything on the entire SABC3 and even SABC2 where that channel’s perennial top-performer, Muvhango with 3.3 million viewers in February is far less than the 3.95 million viewers it had in January.

How low SABC3 will go is anybody’s guess with the channel’s ratings that continue to be in freefall. In February SABC3’s best number was again lower, plunging further to just 490 709 viewers at most, again down from January’s 652 702 and December’s 491 171.

SABC3’s troubled telenovela The Estate had at most a measly 296 682 viewers at 19:00 during primetime in February, again down from January’s paltry 312 382 that makes a production break or cancellation almost a certainty.

Mister Right finds ratings

On SABC1 Skeem Saam dropped from 3.93 million viewers to 3.82 million viewers in February, while the Zulu news bulletin continued its growth from 2.46 million viewers to 2.6million viewers.   

The Xhosa TV news on SABC1 was also up from 2.3 million viewers to 2.54 million viewers. The Siswati/Ndebele TV news made a showing as the 19thh most-watched piece of programming on SABC1 during February with 1.45 million viewers.

The new reality show, 13 Weeks to Find Mister Right made a great debut on SABC1 with 1.55 million viewers.

SABC2 has a problem

SABC2 has a growing ratings problem under the surface. 

While Muvhango lured over 3 million viewers as the most-watched show on the channel, followed by the 2022 State of the Nation Address (2.5 million viewers), a behind-the-scenes insert of new show Ou Toppies (1.4 million viewers), the 2022 Budget Speech (1.28 million viewers) and Giyani (1.12 million viewers), only these five pieces of programming managed to lure more than a million viewers during February to SABC2.

The rest of the SABC2’s top 20 schedule is languishing between 824 566 and a shockingly low 440 633 viewers. 

Just a few years ago, even the now-struggling SABC3 had more viewers and higher ratings for its top shows than what SABC2 has now if the veneer of top shows are scraped away.

People will watch news at 8

While TV news isn’t about ratings but a public service, decent and strong ratings helps and e.tv has a lot to smile about with its flagship English TV news bulletin berthed in the 20:00-timeslot where the SABC years ago said viewers no longer want to watch news. 

It turns out they do.

The strong and stable e.tv News bulletin at 20:00 solidified its position as appointment television further in February, climbing further from 1.7 to 1.99 million viewers in February. That is just a tad fewer viewers than e.tv’s Durban Gen prime time soap which grabbed 2.16 million viewers during February.

In contrast, the English TV news on SABC3 at 18:00 – the broadcaster’s flagship TV news bulletin – lured just 409 579 viewers.

The Queen comes down

On pay-TV, MultiChoice’s linear DStv audience slipped below 1 million viewers for the first time since mid-2016 with 942 293 DStv subscribers that tuned to Gomora on M-Net’s Mzansi Magic (DStv 161) in February as the most-watched show on DStv for the month, down from the 1.16 million who watched in January.

The Queen, from Ferguson Films also on Mzansi Magic, which officially got its cancellation notification, shed an eye-popping third (-30.9%) of its audience in just a month, plummeting from 1 096 713 viewers in January to 757 333 in February.

A Big Brother Mzansi highlights show on Mzansi Magic, putting it in 10th place for the month, eked out a disappointing 487 770 viewers on 13 February, the most viewers the reality show managed to muster.

The River (733 559 to 560 428), Diep City (698 085 to 637694), Mnakwethu (909 194 to 457 619), The Republic (768 592 to 531 246) and Our Perfect Wedding (798 792 to 511 282) all took a tumble during February on DStv.

Umndeni on Moja Love (DStv 157) was also down from 603 097 to 482 880 viewers in February.