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SA’s most watched TV show, Birth, has been renewed until 2023 in a lucrative agreement that the SABC calls “the first of its kind.”
The three-year deal comes after weeks of speculation about the future of the show.
The new deal took a long time to materialize, causing Gugu Zuma-Ncube and Pepsi Pokane’s Stained Glass TV to be forced to halt production on the upcoming seventh season that was supposed to begin filming on November 18.
“Uzalo has earned it and his performance speaks for itself. The property has broken industry records for a full-length soap opera or drama series, ”said Sane Zondi, program manager for SABC 1.
“It is the youngest entry into SABC’s stable and it is phenomenal what the property has managed to achieve despite the challenges it has shown this year, not just in the broadcasting landscape but across the country.”
Birth Executive producer Mmamitse Thibedi confirmed to Sowetan that script writing will resume immediately, while production will begin in January.
Both SABC and Stained Glass TV have indicated to Sowetan that the new agreement means spending more time on workshop story development.
The show is silent on how history will change when the new season premieres next March, but Clive Madiya has been promoted to lead writer, following the departure of Chris Q Radebe.
“It’s too early to reveal story plans. We can’t let the cat out of the bag just yet, but we can assure you that BirthThe best years are yet to come. The story ideas that come out of the current story workshops are exciting, ”Thibedi and Zuma-Ncube said in a joint statement to Sowetan.
“[The new deal] it has a profound impact on the ability of production to invest in people, infrastructure and technical capacity. It means job security for employees and consistency for SMB providers.
“The consequence of investing in the aforementioned areas is a better show, which will translate into higher ratings and more ad revenue.”
Birth made history on local television after reaching a high ratings of 11.4 million viewers in April. While the show remains the most watched in South Africa, it has since dropped to an average of 8.2 million viewers today.
Thibedi and Zuma-Ncube agreed that they will keep those big numbers.
“The audience data is very clear. Before the unexpected five-week air hiatus in May, we averaged 10 million viewers per episode and a 62% market share. We will return to those dizzying heights, ”Thibedi and Zuma-Ncube said in their statement.
“Our immediate goal is to achieve 65% market share in a few months and 70% by the end of 2021.”
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