By Ashley Moyo
ENTERTAINMENT WRITER
INDEPENDENT national commercial television station, 3Ktv — the most watched Zimbabwean channel on satellite television — has added new riveting programming for the festive season.
This comes as the fast-growing station, which is available both free-to-air and on DStv’s channel 293, enters its fourth season. It also comes hard on the heels of 3Ktv’s partnership with Latin America’s TeleSUR English TV, which is broadcasting lively daily shows of the ongoing Fifa World Cup until the Qatar football jamboree ends.
3Ktv’s head of programming, Lucia Kanyongo, told the Daily News yesterday that there was so much to look forward to in the fourth season which started last night. “This December will be packed with new exciting shows all tailored for family viewing.
In line with our growing viewership, we have linedup a number of programmes that are exclusive to the station which include a sports combo to be shown during weekends at 3pm. Season four is also packed with exciting children’s shows, movies and the continuance of the popular Korean dramas, as 3Ktv continues to strive to meet its audiences’ demands,” Kanyongo said.
She added that headline programmes such as popular telenovelas Tangled and Amanxeba, as well as the station’s much-followed news and current affairs programme, Vantage, would have more spice for 3Ktv’s viewers in the new season.
Speaking recently on the unique partnership with TeleSUR, Kanyongo said the television station continued to “write its own compelling script”, as it grew from strength to strength. “We promised our viewers exciting and unique programming from our very first day on air way back in February this year, and we are making good on that promise, including on the sporting front.
The Fifa World Cup is humongous and by far the biggest sporting event in the world. It was only right that we found a way of spotlighting it appropriately…” she said last month. TeleSUR is a Latin American terrestrial and satellite news television network with a growing presents on the African continent and the islands of the Caribbean.
On his part, Clever Banganayi, the Head of TeleSUR English TV Africa, told the Daily News that the unique daily shows which are being flighted on 3Ktv for the duration of the FIFA World Cup were a testament of the station’s incredible growth and reach since its launch in February.
“TeleSUR English TV is pleased to partner with 3Ktv, a young and vibrant TV station in broadcasting, on our daily shows named ‘From the Field, which recount how soccer culture radiates from the epicentre of the Fifa World Cup Qatar.
“The live shows will summarise the results of each day and highlight what is expected for the next matches, while also interacting with fans outside the stadiums. In addition, the programme will showcase how the World Cup culture is experienced in Latin America, Africa, Europe, Asia, the Middle East and the Caribbean,” Banganayi said then.
“Through this show we hope to create conditions necessary to unite the people from the Global South through the sharing of content and through awareness of all cultures around the world through the love of the game of soccer,” he added.
The show runs between 5:30pm and 6pm from Monday to Saturday, and from 4:30pm to 5pm on Sundays. Speaking to the Daily News recently, Jester Media Services’ Managing Director for the Group’s Broadcasting Division, Zweli Sibanda, also said 3Ktv remained well ahead of all the projected viewership and advertising figures.
“3Ktv is enjoying phenomenal support from Zimbabweans, which is reflected in the latest Zimbabwe All Media & Products Survey (ZAMPS) report and the station’s all-round solid performance. “The support that we are getting from both viewers and our business partners continues to surpass all our initial projections.,” Sibanda said.
According to the latest report of the non-partisan ZAMPS for the first six months of 2022, that was finalised when 3Ktv was just three months old, the privately-owned station is the most watched Zimbabwean channel on satellite. In addition, the history-making, free-to-air channel is making significant strides on the digital terrestrial broadcasting front, as authorities slowly start to roll out the required set top boxes.
3Ktv is a sister venture to Zimbabwe’s iconic and number one business publication, The Financial Gazette, as well as the inimitable Daily News and the Daily News On Sunday.