In response to the unfolding pandemic situation, MultiChoice worked with local and international news channels in mid-March to add 24-hour news coverage to the DStv Now free service in just a matter of days. The intent was to help all South Africans stay up to date with announcements and developments, and the results so far are encouraging. Usage of the service has increased 20% since the lockdown began, and peak usage is up 80% compared to pre-crisis peaks.
In another step to help families through the lockdown period, MultiChoice has added additional educational content to the free service with the Mindset PoP channel. This channel features educational programming covering the entire General Education and Training (GET) phase, including Early Childhood Development (ECD), as well as a key focus on the Grade 4–9 curriculum.
The channel aims to prepare children for when schools reopen. Mindset PoP will deliver live lessons daily, with six fresh hours every day. A website is available for parents to download worksheets and information sheets to work through with expert teachers. Lessons are based on the South African Curriculum Assessment Policy Statements (Caps) and are also aligned to the Cambridge curriculum.
Speaking about the free news and educational channels, Niclas Ekdahl, CEO of the Connected Video division of MultiChoice, said: “We’re extremely grateful to all of the channel providers for being so willing to work with us to help all South Africans through this unprecedented lockdown period. Thanks to their support we’re able to keep people informed, keep kids’ educations going, and keep people entertained.”
The full list of channels available to non-DStv customers on the DStv Now free service is as follows:
100 - DStv
180 - People’s Weather
238 - SuperSport Play
313 - PBS Kids
317 - Mindset PoP
320 - Channel O
343 - TBN
400 - BBC World News
401 - CNN
402 - Sky News
403 - eNCA
404 - SABC News
405 - Newzroom Afrika
405 - AlJazeera
414 - Euronews Now
417 - africanews
To sign up for the DStv Now free service, go to http://now.dstv.com
