M- Net made a dramatic announcement confirming that the show is set to be a fully fledged ALL STARS version, featuring some of the most unforgettable, outspoken, entertaining previous housemates.

Big Brother All Stars will see 14 housemates from 14 African countries come together to compete 24/7 for 91 days in the search for the ultimate winner prize – USD 200 000, watched by audiences on DStv channel 198.

The Big Brother Africa 5 housemates in  the order they entered:

1. Mwisho from Tanzania
2. Jennifer from Mozambique
3. Paloma – Zambia
4. Munya – Zimbabwe
5. Code – Malawi
6. Sheila from Kenya
7. Yacob from Ethiopia
8. Sammy from Ghana
9. Kaone from Botswana
10. Merly from Namibia
11. Uti from Nigeria
12. Lerato from South Africa
13. Hannington from Uganda
14. Tatiana from Angola

Related posts:

1. Big Brother Africa 4 (2009): The Revolution. Housemates. Forum. Big Brother Africa 2009 The Revolution hosted by Ikponmwosa "I.K."...
2. Big Brother Africa 3 [2008] The 3rd edition of the popular reality TV series Big...
3. Big Brother Africa 3: Lucille is out! In an unexpected twist of fate, Lucille from Namibia left...
4. Big Brother Africa 3: TK is out at last! The Big Brother Africa 3 house mate that can be...
5. Big Brother Africa 3: Mimi is evicted I have been away from home for a little while...
6. Africa Magic Plus – Multichoice’s newest channel I have often wondered why Multichoice did not name their...
7. How to watch free channels on DStv Africa. Channels & Settings. For those who do not know already, there a few...
8. A review of DStv Mobile and Nokia 5330 Mobile TV Edition DStv Mobile is not exactly a new service. It was...
9. DStv HD broadcast service: detailed info about DStv HD PVR decoder Backstory: I had procured the DStv HD Decoder a few...
10. DSTV Africa: No more SABC Africa, where is CNBC Africa? MultiChoice has finally removed SABC Africa from its bouquets: SABC...

So South Africa crashed out early from the World Cup? So what?

Several months before the first whistle was blown to commence the first match in the South Africa 2010 FIFA World Cup, the official South African tourism board had released a TV commercial on some international channels all geared towards attracting the world to the warmth and excitement that can be experienced in South Africa. As usual, music and dance was the key tool. Enter Diski. “Diski” is a local slang South Africa for the game of football.

The Diski dance is a dance which is comprised of a series of choreographed football moves, named from different parts of the country, and was created for the 2010 FIFA World Cup as part of its advertising campaign. The moves are named in Tswana, Zulu, Sotho and English amongst others and include “Tsamaya”, “Heel Extension Mkhari” and “Chester”. The adverts were shown on CNN, BBC, Eurosport and SkySports amongst others. The motivation of the advert was to give soccer fans “a chance to learn the moves and “feel the rhythm of African football”".

The Internet has plenty of Diski dance videos to offer, but I am sharing a carefully selected few with you. Enjoy!

Learn the Diski Dance

South Africa 2010 TV Advert

Where the Hell is Matt in South Africa?

Aki & Pawpaw do the Diski Dance

Diski Dance in Chicago, USA

Should you want to create your own Diski Dance video, just download the Diski Dance MP3 audio file.

Related posts:

1. South Africa 2010: Meet AfricaUnited MTN, the leading cellular network in Africa, is an official...
2. 3 African Football Websites You Should Follow for 2010 FIFA World Cup coverage As the Internet penetrates the world’s second largest continent, there...
3. South Africa 2010: Will Ghana keep the African dream alive? Enthusiasm for the six African countries that qualified to play...
4. Virgin Money in South Africa Like many of Sir Richard Branson’s enterprises, Virgin Money has...
5. Nigeria, South Africa, Ghana top cybercrime in Africa The verdict is out: Nigeria is still among the top...
6. World AIDS Day – South Africa & Swaziland On World AIDS Day, the news came flashing that South...
7. As Xenophobic as South Africans A look at the disgraceful xenophobia exhibited by many South...
8. Jonga.co.za – South Africa’s Newest Search Engine Jonga.co.za - South Africa's Newest Search Engine. I got to...
9. DSTV Africa: No more SABC Africa, where is CNBC Africa? MultiChoice has finally removed SABC Africa from its bouquets: SABC...
10. Angola 2010: Ghana vrs Nigeria match. Who would dominate? This year’s African Cup of Nations tournament – Angola 2010...

DStv decoders are designed, manufactured and sold to receive Multichoice services only. Therefore, I offer no guarantee that all the channels I am sharing would necessarily work on your DStv decoder. The DStv HD decoder for example, does not offer a “Public bouquet” and even for the single view decoders that do, one might be unable to watch the unencrypted channels once subscription is overdue. It would thus make the most sense to simply buy a good MPEG4-compatible digital satellite receiver and connect same to your satellite dish. There would be more on that later.

Some unencrypted TV channels currently available on Eutelsat W4 & W7. Image: davidajao.com

The free channels from China

The easiest unencrypted channels to watch are the following 3 TV channels from China Central Television (CCTV), the major state television broadcaster in mainland China:

• CCTV News (formerly CCTV 9): this channel is targetted at an English-speaking international audience and mainly broadcasts news and current affairs programmes
• CCTV-F: programming targetted at a French-speaking international audience
• CCTV-4: an international channel broadcast in Chinese language

Any DStv decoders can view the CCTV channels whether your subscription is expired or not. So long your satellite is pointed towards 36° East.

If you are using a good Free-To-Air (FTA) digital satellite receiver, a blind scan should reveal the CCTV channels. Else, enter the following parameters to your receiver:

• In South Africa – Frequency: 11637 Symbol rate: 22000 Polarization: Vertical FEC: 3/4
• Rest of Africa – Frequency: 11940 Symbol rate: 27500 Polarization: Horizontal FEC: 3/4 and Frequency: 11862 Symbol rate: 27500 Polarization: Horizontal FEC: 3/4

The free channels from East Africa

In recent times, a few channels have emerged on Eutelsat W7 from Kenya, and beamed at the African continent:

• NTV Kenya: a leading TV channel in Kenya offering news and general entertainment
• KBC Channel 1: a TV service from the wholly-state owned Kenya Broadcasting Corporation
• K24: a news and current affairs channel from Kenya
• KTN Kenya: an all-round channel in Kenya. Arguably the leading TV station
• NTV Uganda: a general entertainment channel targetted at Uganda

Parameters:

• Frequency: 11731 Symbol rate: 8751 Polarization: Vertical FEC: 3/5
• Frequency: 11716 Symbol rate: 3141 Polarization: Vertical FEC: 3/4

The free channels from Francophone West Africa

A bouquet of mostly French-speaking African channels exist on Eutelsat W4.

• La Chaîne de Futur (LCF): a tv channel from Togo
• Mboa TV: an entertainment TV channel based in France and exclusively dedicated to black-afro artists
• RTS 1 (Senegal): Radiodiffusion Télévision Sénégalaise (RTS) is the Senegalese public broadcasting company
• 2STV: a TV channel in Senegal broadcasting mainly cultural programmes, interviews with local music and other artistic stars, and talkshows
• Touba TV: a privately-owned TV channel in Senegal
• ORTB TV: Office de Radiodiffusion et Télévision du Bénin (ORTB) is a the mainstream terrestrial television channel and radio operator in Benin
• LoveWorld Plus: Christian-themed programming in  English language from Nigeria

Parameters:

• Frequency: 12437 Symbol rate: 23437 Polarization: Horizontal FEC: 3/4

Kindly note that the channels are subject to change without notice. Thus, re-scanning your receiver regularly ensures that you are constantly in the loop as to the current channels.

As always, your comments and suggestions are welcome.

Related posts:

1. DStv HD broadcast service: detailed info about DStv HD PVR decoder Backstory: I had procured the DStv HD Decoder a few...
2. CNBC Africa now on DSTV West Africa I was quite excited to see CNBC Africa beamed to...
3. DSTV Africa: No more SABC Africa, where is CNBC Africa? MultiChoice has finally removed SABC Africa from its bouquets: SABC...
4. How to add more TV & Radio channels to your Multi TV decoder Before reading, I assume you already have a Multi TV...
5. Africa Magic Yoruba launches; a 24-hour Yoruba channel on DSTV Africa Magic Yoruba and Africa Magic Hausa launched today Monday...
6. NileSat 101 & 102: More TV Channels than you can handle I had the opportunity to visit Zaria, a town in...
7. Want 6 Radio Channels on MultiTV? RESCAN your decoder Some of the TV channels on MultiTV have been out-of-sync...
8. DStv moving to new satellite Eutelsat W7 Eutelsat W4, the satellite that beams DStv signals to residents...
9. Free-to-air Ghanaian TV Stations on Satellite Ghanaians abroad are keen to stay in touch with social...
10. A review of DStv Mobile and Nokia 5330 Mobile TV Edition DStv Mobile is not exactly a new service. It was...

The technology behind DStv Mobile is simple enough. The Mobile TV service is not streamed over the internet. Though one of the promises of 3G was Mobile TV, streaming live TV over the internet turned out to be impractical. Pushing a data-intensive service over a cellular network would simply result in a very congested network.  Broadcasting mobile TV over the airwaves is much more efficient and cost-effective. In comes DVB-H. I summarized the following DVB-H definition from Wikipedia:

DVB-H (Digital Video Broadcasting – Handheld) is one of three prevalent mobile TV formats. It is a technical specification for bringing broadcast services to mobile handsets. From March 2008, DVB-H is officially endorsed by the European Union as the “preferred technology for terrestrial mobile broadcasting”. DVB-H technology is a superset of the very successful DVB-T (Digital Video Broadcasting – Terrestrial) system for digital terrestrial television, with additional features to meet the specific requirements of handheld, battery-powered receivers.

Getting on board

I obtained the Nokia 5330 Mobile TV Edition from MTN Ghana in Accra for 270 Ghana Cedis (about $193). The 5330 obtained directly from MTN comes with a complimentary DStv Mobile license valid 31st March 2011. Activating the service with MTN Ghana was a herculean task. At the time of buying the device, the DStv Mobile service was down and so the service could not be activated by MTN support staff. Subsequent calls to their customer service number yielded nothing as they insisted they could not give me the settings on phone. Incidentally, I arrived Lagos Nigeria a few days later. MTN Nigeria pushed their internet settings to the phone as soon as I inserted an MTN Nigeria SIM into the 5330. I accepted and activated the MTN NG internet settings. On my way out of the airport, I simply re-scanned the airwaves and was able to easily activate the DStv Mobile service on my own. NTA International was soon beamed to me from the tiny screens of the 5330.

DStv Mobile is currently available in selected cities in South Africa, Nigeria, Kenya, Namibia and Ghana.

The mobile TV service

In Nigeria, the DStv Mobile service comes with 11 channels in the following order:

1. NTA International – a TV service from Nigeria’s state-owned TV broadcaster targetted at an international audience
2. SuperSport Blitz – a sports update channel for Africa offering content from live sport to result updates
3. SuperSport 9
4. CNN International – news & current affairs from a world-class broadcaster
5. Magic World Africa – African general entertainment
6. Africa Magic – mostly movies, series and general entertainment from Nigeria
7. Channel O – musical videos from Africa and across the world
8. Cartoon Network
9. Trinity Broadcasting Network (TBN) – broadcast Christian related programming
10. SuperSport 3N – Africa’s premier football channel, broadcasting national and international football events
11. SuperSport 4

The service currently covers 4 of the biggest cities in Nigeria: Lagos, Ibadan, Abuja and Port Harcourt.

Coverage in Lagos: the service is transmitted from 4 transmitters in the Lagos metropolis. I was able to enjoy it indoors and outdoors in Ikeja, Festac, and on the outskirts of Lagos as far as Redeemers’ Camp on Lagos/Ibadan Expressway.

Coverage in Accra: the service is transmitted from 3 transmitters, covering Kasoa, much of Accra and Tema as well as the neighbouring towns.

Since the phone earpiece doubles as the antenna for the 5330, the quality of TV reception depends on the position of the earpiece. In rooms, where the reception was patchy, re-positioning the earpiece helped.

Clearly, an attempt has been made to balance the variety of content offered. Replacing one of the 4 sport channels with one that offered western movies would have offered much more balance.

The service also comes with an Electronic Programme Guide (EPG) that offers information about the programme on air and scheduled programmes for 24 hours. Should you connect to the service using a Nokia phone, you may also download & install an app from Nokia’s Ovi Store known as DStv Mobile Guide. It offers a detailed EPG.

The Nokia 5330 Mobile TV Edition

Nokia.com describes the 5330 as follows:

TV goes mobile
Taking mobile entertainment to the next level, the stylish Nokia 5330 Mobile TV edition is a television, music player, and digital camera – all in one.

Aside the Mobile TV functionality, the 5330 is a basic 3G phone. It is cute and attractive whilst being small enough to fit into any standard-sized pocket. Sliding the screen upwards reveals an elegant numeric keypad that makes texting a pleasure due to its sturdiness.

An in-built FM stereo radio (comes with RDS) and an in-built media player make the 5330 an attractive entertainment device. 3 dedicated music keys make the media player & mobile TV application even more effective. Other keys are dedicated to increasing/decreasing audio volume with another for locking/unlocking the keys. Slot in a Micro SD card (maximum 16GB allowed) and you’re in for a musical bliss as the 16GB would easily accommodate thousands of audio clips from your music collection. Note however that the 5330 is bundled with only a 1GB Micro SD card.

The in-built camera is pretty basic. It comes with an automatic flash and can take photos with a maximum resolution of 3.2 megapixels. The video camera can record at a maximum resolution of 320×240. If you do not have high expectations, you should not be disappointed by the basic camera.

The 5330 comes with 4 games pre-installed: Block’d, Diamond Rush, Rally Stars and Real Football 2010.

Other DVB-H compatible phones

DStv Mobile is not an exclusive preserve of the 5330. A few other phones have in-built capability for receiving DStv Mobile signals. Leading the pack are the following N-series phones: Nokia N92, Nokia N77 and Nokia N96. Others are: ZTE F900, ZTE F912. From Samsung: SGH-P910, SGH-P920, SGH-P930, SGH-P940, SGH-P960, SGH-F510. From LG: U900, KB620, KU950, U960, KB770, HB620T.

With the aid of an external mobile tv receiver known as Nokia SU-33W, a few more Nokia phones can join the party via bluetooth. The compatible phones at the time of writing are: Nokia 5530 XpressMusic, Nokia 5800 XpressMusic, Nokia 6220 classic, Nokia E75, Nokia N73, Nokia N85, Nokia N86 8MP, Nokia N97, and Nokia N97 mini.

Note that you might have to seek the assistance of your service provider directly, if the devices do not receive the DStv Mobile service on their own.

Availability

DStv Mobile is currently available through MTN in South Africa, Nigeria and Ghana, through Safaricom in Kenya, and through MTC in Namibia.

Related posts:

1. A review of MTN Nigeria Mobile Broadband service I picked-up an MTN Nigeria mobile broadband kit recently and...
2. DStv HD broadcast service: detailed info about DStv HD PVR decoder Backstory: I had procured the DStv HD Decoder a few...
3. A review of MTN Ghana Mobile Broadband service With over 7.4 million subscribers as of September 2009, MTN...
4. How to watch free channels on DStv Africa. Channels & Settings. For those who do not know already, there a few...
5. African Mobile Marketing & Advertising Summit 2008 Lagos is playing host to Africa’s first Mobile Marketing &...
6. CNBC Africa now on DSTV West Africa I was quite excited to see CNBC Africa beamed to...
7. Are mobile phones pushing cyber cafes out of business? When last did you visit a cyber cafe? Eight years...
8. GTV on DStv GTV (Ghana TV) would soon be among the list of...
9. Mobile TV in Ghana A terrestrial digital mobile TV service has been launched in...
10. How I found my way to MEST Accra on Google Maps Mobile Meltwater Entrepreneural School of Technology (MEST) in East Legon (a...

The world cup fever is upon us and now couldn’t have been a better time to enjoy the ultimate in TV entertainment. With electronics stores offering discount on flat panel (LCD & plasma) TVs, with DStv ready to beam the World Cup to Africa in HD, there couldn’t be a better time to get on the HD bandwagon. The future of TV is already here.

DStv HD PVR

To enjoy the high quality broadcast, you need the following:

• HD PVR (connected to the TV via a HDMI cable)
• A Full HD or HD ready TV
• Satellite installation (minimum twin LNB)
• Home Theatre System (optional)

The good side

Picture quality: the quality is about 5 times better than standard definition TV. In plain terms, HD is a digital television broadcasting system with higher resolution than traditional Standard Definition (SD) television systems. Instead of using the conventional 625 lines to plot a TV picture, HD uses 720 or 1080 lines. In addition, the pixels in each of those lines are smaller and closer together, resulting in hugely improved picture quality, clarity and colour definition. The pictures are so clear you would not mind re-watching movies you already watched before.

Audio quality: most of the HD channels currently available on DStv offer audio in Dolby® Digital format. Dolby® Digital is a surround sound technology that beams at least 5 discrete channels of excellent audio quality. To experience the full magic of HD content with high quality sound you will need a compatible 6 speaker Home Theatre System.

Content variety: DStv currently offers the following HD channels, 24 hours every day:

1. MNET Africa HD: this is a channel that currently broadcasts a mix of reality shows, series, blockbuster movies and some musicals. Most of the programming is available in surround sound as well as stereo. Channel 170.
2. SuperSports HD: broadcasts a wide variety of sport events all in HD. Audio is in Surround Sound and stereo. Channel 171. This channel is NOT available to subscribers in Nigeria.
3. Discovery HD Showcase: provides documentary programming focused primarily on popular science, technology, and history. All the broadcasts are available in Surround Sound only; no stereo.
4. iConcerts HD: a music channel from Europe broadcasting music from a wide range of genres including blues, hip-hop, jazz, pop, soul, reggae, rock, classic and more. Audio is in stereo only.
5. TVCine HD: a Portuguese premium movie channel that showcases recent movies and premieres from all the major studios, as well as comedy, action, classic and old movies. This channel is available to Portugese bouquet subscribers only. Audio is in Surround Sound only.
6. SuperSports Extra HD: this is a new channel that is not yet broadcasting at the time of writing. It appears to have been setup to augment Channel 171 during the 2010 FIFA World Cup. Channel 174 will be the HD Extra channel. This will include World Cup matches that occur simultaneously, plus other HD sports programming. The channel will run until the conclusion of the World Cup and will be re-activated in August.

The decoder: The DStv HD PVR is a sophisticated piece of hardware that offers the following features:

• the HD PVR allows you to view one channel, while recording two other channels simultaneously, as well as:

1. record 150 hours of standard definition TV or 50 hours of HD TV
2. pause live TV programming
3. rewind programming
4. play recorded programming in fast forward or slow motion modes
5. XtraView capability: allows dual viewing on another XtraView-compatible decoder
6. “Favourite channels” – once a set of channels as selected as favourites, one can enjoy:
   • a personalised TV guide, listing the schedules of just those channels.
   • a personalised viewing environment which includes only your selected channels. No more hopping over unwanted or unavailable channels.
7. 24 hour i-Plate: the i-Plate on the single view and dual view decoders have information for 2 programmes (that is, now & next). The i-Plate on the HD PVR improves on this and shares information on programming for the next 24 hours allowing you to easily browse the programming schedule and set recordings without leaving your existing channel.

The not-so good side

Not cheap: the whole setup doesn’t come cheap.  I paid over 500 Ghana cedis for the HD PVR decoder alone. Add the cost of a HD ready TV & home theatre system, and you would get the full picture. Installation alone costs $50 flat. I later found out the $50 was worth it because it took the installer about 2 hours of meticulous work to setup.

More complicated setup: the HD PVR decoder comes bundled with a new LNB. The LNB passes signal to the decoder via 4 separate coaxial cables. For an existing DStv installation, the LNB on the satellite dish has to be replaced and the additional cables connected. Considering the more complicated setup, the HD PVR comes with a guide offering suggestions on how to connect to the TV and/or home theatre system.

No subtitles: the HD PVR currently does not support subtitles on any channels.

Bye bye to FTA channels: unlike older decoders, the HD PVR displays only one matrix of channels and does not offer access to “public bouquet”. As such, one is unable to view the few free-to-air channels currently available on W4 and W7 satellites. Note however that CCTV4, CCTV News & CCTV French are currently available free-to-air.

No genre or searches on TV Guide: Due to current technical limitations, the HD PVRs have a much simpler TV Guide. Currently, there are no search facilities (ie. A-Z, theme search or 24 hours) and no genres. The TV Guide will get additional features in future releases of the software.

No DMX DJ service: The HD PVRs do not yet support the DMX DJ service and so doesn’t display the song title and musician information on DMX channels.

Too few HD channels: there are only 5 active HD channels at the time of writing. There is no news channel in HD.

Summary

Though DStv’s HD broadcast is still work-in-progress, the advantages far outweigh the shortcomings and thus makes it a must-have for movie lovers and sports enthusiasts in Africa. The up-coming FIFA World Cup makes it even a more compelling experience.

Your comments, questions and suggestions are always welcome. Share them in the comments area.

Related posts:

1. How to watch free channels on DStv Africa. Channels & Settings. For those who do not know already, there a few...
2. Want 6 Radio Channels on MultiTV? RESCAN your decoder Some of the TV channels on MultiTV have been out-of-sync...
3. A review of DStv Mobile and Nokia 5330 Mobile TV Edition DStv Mobile is not exactly a new service. It was...
4. How to add more TV & Radio channels to your Multi TV decoder Before reading, I assume you already have a Multi TV...
5. Africa Magic Yoruba launches; a 24-hour Yoruba channel on DSTV Africa Magic Yoruba and Africa Magic Hausa launched today Monday...
6. Infinity TV, a new Direct-To-Home Digital Satellite TV service I have been inundated recently with requests about how to...
7. GTV on DStv GTV (Ghana TV) would soon be among the list of...
8. DSTV Africa: No more SABC Africa, where is CNBC Africa? MultiChoice has finally removed SABC Africa from its bouquets: SABC...
9. DStv moving to new satellite Eutelsat W7 Eutelsat W4, the satellite that beams DStv signals to residents...
10. SMART TV, Ghana’s latest digital terrestrial television service launches SMART TV, a new digital terrestrial television service was launched...

infinity tv, a new direct-to-home digital satellite TV service for Nigeria

A press release announcing the service in September 2009 read in part:

Pathfinder Launches Premium DTH Service across Nigeria with SES WORLD SKIES

Uniquely positioned to enable the rapid expansion of television broadcast services across Africa, SES WORLD SKIES, a division of SES S.A., today announced Pathfinder Communications has signed a multi-transponder, multi-year deal to deliver its new Infinity TV package over the ASTRA 2B satellite to homes throughout Nigeria.

Pathfinder has secured two full Ku-band transponders to deliver its premium DTH lineup, which offers 45 channels of movies, music, sports, lifestyle, news and children’s programming.

Since Infinity TV is still in testing transmission phase, the following channels are subject to change:

1. Click – a cartoon channel targeted at children
2. Movie Express – a movie channel focused on western genres
3. Kilonsele – a cultural channel focused on Yoruba language
4. Springboard – musicals, talk shows, electronic tutorials, comedies, dramas, quizzes etc all aimed at the youth
5. Infinity Sports – a sports channel
6. Voxafrica Africa – a Pan-African, bilingual and independent TV channel
7. LoveWorld Plus – a Christian faith and lifestyle channel
8. African Movie Channel – a channel focused on movies from Nollywood, Nigeria’s movie industry
9. Setanta Africa – an international sports channel
10. Odenigbo – a movies and lifestyle channel in Igbo language

Considering the current phase, do not be disappointed that some of the channels broadcast certain movies in a constant loop.

There is no harm in enjoying the free service while it lasts. If you are currently watching Multi TV channels, simply enter the following parameters to your Multi TV decoder to enjoy Infinity TV:

Frequency: 12543
Symbol rate: 20800
Polarization: Horizontal

Re-scan your Multi TV decoder after entering the parameters.

If you need a detailed help with the steps, read: How to add more TV & Radio channels to your Multi TV decoder. If you are using an MPEG4 decoder that supports blind scan, simply scan your decoder to reveal Infinity TV.

Enjoy the free channels while they last…

Related posts:

1. Multi TV Ghana, a new free digital satellite TV service [updated] Kojo Oppong-Nkrumah, the host of Joy FM‘s Super Morning Show...
2. Early review of Multi TV + Satellite information Introductory note: To put this post into a proper perspective,...
3. SMART TV, Ghana’s latest digital terrestrial television service launches SMART TV, a new digital terrestrial television service was launched...
4. Free-to-air Ghanaian TV Stations on Satellite Ghanaians abroad are keen to stay in touch with social...
5. DStv HD broadcast service: detailed info about DStv HD PVR decoder Backstory: I had procured the DStv HD Decoder a few...
6. How to add more TV & Radio channels to your Multi TV decoder Before reading, I assume you already have a Multi TV...
7. DStv moving to new satellite Eutelsat W7 Eutelsat W4, the satellite that beams DStv signals to residents...
8. India attempting to undercut Nigeria’s Communication Satellite programme India is attempting to undercut Nigeria's Communication Satellite programme...
9. The future of home entertainment Bill Gates wants us to believe that sooner than later,...
10. Africa Magic Yoruba launches; a 24-hour Yoruba channel on DSTV Africa Magic Yoruba and Africa Magic Hausa launched today Monday...

Africa Magic

There is no doubt that the country Nigeria is a very important market for Multichoice. Being Africa’s largest population and home to Nollywood, it not only offers most of the movies on Africa Magic, but also offers a ready consumer market for the direct-to-home digital satellite TV service called DStv.

Africa Magic had grown from a channel that only broadcasts for a few hours daily in 2005 to the 24-hour channels available today, in four favours:

1. Africa Magic – mainly broadcasts Nollywood movies and some general entertainment programmes, mostly Nigerian.
2. Africa Magis Plus – attempts to cater for East Africa, by offering movies & general entertainment from East African countries as well as from Ghana.
3. Africa Magic Hausa – movies and general entertainment in Hausa language.
4. Africa Magic Yoruba – movies and general entertainment in Yoruba language.

The two factors that must have brought about Africa Magic Yoruba would be demand and competition.

The Demand

Screening Yoruba movies has been a popular move for Multichoice, especially in Nigeria. Yoruba movies are screened on Africa Magic on weekends with at least two Yoruba movies screened on Saturdays and Sundays.

Multichoice soon started screening Yoruba movies on another of its channels Magic World, daily. Perhaps due to more demand, the pay TV provider has now created an entire channel focused on Yoruba programming.

The Competition

Competition exists for Multichoice, in Nigeria. HiTV and DaarSat are the leading competition. Both are indigenous Nigerian services focused on the Nigerian populace. In a bid to better meet the needs of their audience, both HiTV and DaarSat offer Yoruba channels.

HiTV offers Amuludun TV. From hitv.com.ng:

Nigeria’s first satellite 24hours Yoruba Language general entertainment channel. Giving you a blend of the very best of Yoruba movies, music, talkshows and lots more!

DaarSat on the other hand, offers Faaji Television, a Yoruba lifestyle channel.

With the competition offering dedicated Yoruba programming channels respectively, it is only natural that Multichoice being the market leader is under pressure to do same.

In addition to the multiple of Yoruba programming, what makes the idea of a 24/7 Yoruba channel even more feasible is that Yoruba language is the native tongue of the approximately 60 million Yoruba people in West Africa. It is spoken, among other languages, in Nigeria, Benin, and Togo.

Africa Magic Hausa and Africa Magic Yoruba are available on channels 117 and 118 respectively.

Related posts:

1. Africa Magic Plus – Multichoice’s newest channel I have often wondered why Multichoice did not name their...
2. How to watch free channels on DStv Africa. Channels & Settings. For those who do not know already, there a few...
3. DStv HD broadcast service: detailed info about DStv HD PVR decoder Backstory: I had procured the DStv HD Decoder a few...
4. New TV Channel for Africa This is interesting. An AFP report: Africa is mulling setting...
5. CNBC Africa now on DSTV West Africa I was quite excited to see CNBC Africa beamed to...
6. A review of DStv Mobile and Nokia 5330 Mobile TV Edition DStv Mobile is not exactly a new service. It was...
7. GTV on DStv GTV (Ghana TV) would soon be among the list of...
8. NN24 (NetworkNews24), A new 24-hour News Network NN24 is a new 24-hour news network that is currently...
9. Infinity TV, a new Direct-To-Home Digital Satellite TV service I have been inundated recently with requests about how to...
10. Ecobank launches Naira-denominated credit card Ecobank Nigeria Limited has launched a Mastercard-backed credit card. The...

Music video by Akon performing Oh Africa. (C) 2009 Universal Motown Records, a Division of UMG Recordings, Inc. and I.G. Records, Inc.

Related posts:

1. Akon’s Pot of Gold Towards the end of the year 2005, I came across...
2. South Africa 2010: We can’t play football but we can dance! South Africans may not be the best football players but...
3. Why I blog about Africa I recently got tagged by a fellow blogger at “Nigerian...
4. New TV Channel for Africa This is interesting. An AFP report: Africa is mulling setting...
5. Big Brother Africa 3 [2008] The 3rd edition of the popular reality TV series Big...
6. Another Fibre Optic Cable Internet Connectivity for Africa It appears Internet connectivity on the African continent especially in...
7. Africa Magic Yoruba launches; a 24-hour Yoruba channel on DSTV Africa Magic Yoruba and Africa Magic Hausa launched today Monday...
8. Africa Magic Plus – Multichoice’s newest channel I have often wondered why Multichoice did not name their...
9. How to watch free channels on DStv Africa. Channels & Settings. For those who do not know already, there a few...
10. “Sampson and Delilah” by Ofori Amponsah ft. Voltage I love music. Melodious music. One of such is Ofori...

Maksi Clothing is a new fashion line created by two young Ghanaians who are out to raise the standards of fashion in Ghana, with their new line of urban and practical designs. Abena Sekyiamah is the Head of Design while Nana Darkoa Sekyiamah is the Head of Business Development. The brand “Maksi” is coined from their respective nicknames.

Nana K. Acquah (left), Oluniyi D. Ajao (centre), at Maksi Clothing launch night in Accra, Ghana.

I was privileged to be present at a pre-launch event, where some of their designs were unveiled to an exclusive audience for the first time. I picked-up a shirt (see photo) and already had a feel of what quality to expect last Friday night.

Friday night exceeded my expectations. The models were well-oiled, literally. They were beaming with smiles and exuding confidence as they cat-walked on the walkway right on top of the swimming pool. The line of clothing varied from stylish gowns for ladies, through kaftans for men, to funky ties.

Ahead of the display by the models were some art performance by D.K. Osei and Mercy who did the Spoken Word, Ras Bomba, Guitarist, and a Salsa dance by Josh and Chanelle.

An auction of some of the clothings was later held.

Here are some photos by Nana Kofi Acquah for your viewing pleasure:

Abena Sekyiamah (centre) taking the applause at the end of the catwalks. Photo by Nana Kofi Acquah. Used by permission.

Nana D. Sekyimah (centre) with a cross-section of the audience. Photo by Nana Kofi Acquah. Used by permission.

It appears Maksi Clothing is here to make a difference and leave a solid impact in Ghana’s fashion world. I would share some recorded video from the event, soon.

Watch out for Maksi Clothing’s website, powered by Web4Africa.

Related posts:

1. Internet Governance Forum (IGF) Accra Remote Hub Participation I am participating remotely in the Internet Governance Forum (IGF)...
2. SMART TV, Ghana’s latest digital terrestrial television service launches SMART TV, a new digital terrestrial television service was launched...
3. How I found my way to MEST Accra on Google Maps Mobile Meltwater Entrepreneural School of Technology (MEST) in East Legon (a...
4. Africa Magic Yoruba launches; a 24-hour Yoruba channel on DSTV Africa Magic Yoruba and Africa Magic Hausa launched today Monday...
5. MFA 2009: Nana Kofi Acquah, a pro photographer Having spent several years in art and advertising, digital photography...
6. Maker Faire Africa 2009: Summary The first edition of Maker Faire Africa was successful by...
7. Expressions: Literary & Arts Night featuring Ghana Bloggers Expressions is a monthly event revolving around a literary &...
8. Ghanablogging.com Meetup on August 13th 2009 Thursday night was special for me because several guests attended...
9. Movie Review: A Sting In A Tale Around this time last Friday night, I was well-seated in...
10. eTranzact ready for Ghana After over 18 months of “testing the waters”, it appears...

A Multi TV dish

The principle is very simple. Multi TV signals reach your decoder from a satellite called Astra 2B, located at 28.2°E. Multi Tv is not the only broadcaster on that satellite. There are a few others. Following the steps enumerated below, you would be tweaking your Multi TV decoder to recognize those other signals so you can enjoy the other broadcasts.

To start: You need a fully installed Multi TV system.

1. Press MENU on your MultiTV remote control
2. Select INSTALLATION
3. Select EDIT SATELLITE
4. Click on the Yellow button to “Add” a new satellite. A new dialog box should appear titled “Add Satellite”.
5. Fill the “Add Satellite” box using the information below and then select YES:
   • Satellite: Astra 2B
   • Longitude: 101 E
   • Frequency: 12572
   • Symbol Rate: 2854
   • Polarization: V (Press the Right button to change the polarization from H to V)
6. Astra 2B should now appear in the list of Satellites under the EDIT SATELLITE menu. Select Astra 2B and press OK.
7. Under EDIT TRANSPONDER, Press the Yellow button and enter the follow values on step at a time:
   Frequency       Symbol Rate          Polarization
   12572                   2854                         V
   12599                   3250                         V
   12729                   2725                         V
8. Press Exit twice.
9. Press Menu > Installation > Install Satellite > Green Button (Scan)
10. You should now see 13 TV and 9 Radio stations. That’s it!

In addition to the 10 TV and 7 Radio channels from Multi TV, the following are available when you follow the steps above.

• GTV (Ghana TV): the state-owned broadcaster that offers general programming including news, sports, music, movies,  and more.
• CRTV: a Christian-themed TV station that offers news, documentaries, movies and more
• LTM TV: A Cameroonian TV station that offers news & entertainment in both English and French.
• Uniiq (FM) Accra: A radio service offered by state-owned Ghana Broadcasting Corporation (GBC). It features news, entertainment, government propaganda and more.
• Royal Radio: A Christian-themed radio service offering general Christian programming, especially music.

Should you have any questions, simply post them in the comments area. Happy viewing…

Related posts:

1. Want 6 Radio Channels on MultiTV? RESCAN your decoder Some of the TV channels on MultiTV have been out-of-sync...
2. How to watch free channels on DStv Africa. Channels & Settings. For those who do not know already, there a few...
3. Early review of Multi TV + Satellite information Introductory note: To put this post into a proper perspective,...
4. Multi TV Ghana, a new free digital satellite TV service [updated] Kojo Oppong-Nkrumah, the host of Joy FM‘s Super Morning Show...
5. NileSat 101 & 102: More TV Channels than you can handle I had the opportunity to visit Zaria, a town in...
6. Infinity TV, a new Direct-To-Home Digital Satellite TV service I have been inundated recently with requests about how to...
7. DStv HD broadcast service: detailed info about DStv HD PVR decoder Backstory: I had procured the DStv HD Decoder a few...
8. Free-to-air Ghanaian TV Stations on Satellite Ghanaians abroad are keen to stay in touch with social...
9. …and GBS/GTV Closed Shop! Shocking news. GTV, has ceased operations citing the effect of...
10. GTV on DStv GTV (Ghana TV) would soon be among the list of...